Inishowen sandbank to be protected

A SMALL sandbank off Inishowen about nine miles east of Inishtrahull has been designated a special area of conservation by the southern Minister for Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht, Jimmy Deenihan.

The Minister advised Hempton’s Turbot Bank was one of two new sandbank sites being proposed for designation.

The other fresh designation is the Blackwater Bank off the coast of Wexford

Hempton’s Turbot Bank is the island’s most northerly sandbank system and will encompass the full geographic range of this habitat type around Ireland.

Mr Deenihan proposed the locations for designation as Special Areas of Conservation (SACs) to protect marine habitats and species listed on the 1992 EU Habitats Directive.

The Department stated: “At the EU Commission’s Marine Atlantic Biogeographic Seminar in 2009, certain habitats and species were identified as insufficiently represented in the list of Irish SACs.

“Ireland agreed a series of further actions with the Commission concerning the designation of additional areas to protect more of these habitats and species.

“The designation of marine SACs is scheduled for completion in Europe in 2012; this list of six additional Special Areas of Conservation will constitute Ireland’s contribution to that process.

“Notification of these proposals have been issued to c 3,000 marine licence holders and other stakeholders along with information on their rights of appeal to the inclusion of an area. An extensive advertising campaign is also commencing to notify the public of these proposed designations.”

According to the National Parks and Wildlife Service shallow sandy sediments provide a habitat for a wide variety of fauna including worms, crustaceans, bivalve molluscs and echinoderms.

Mobile epifauna at the surface of the sandbank may include mysid shrimps, gastropod molluscs, crabs and fish. Sand-eels (Ammodytes spp.), an important food for birds, also live in sandy sediments.

Where coarse stable material, such as shells or stones is present on the sediment surface, hydroids, bryozoans and ascidians are present.

This in turn supports an ecosystem comprising fish, seabirds, seals and dolphins and whales.

The service stated: “There are no records of seals hauling out on Irish offshore sandbanks because most are completely immersed at all times. However, it is likely that the areas over and adjacent to sandbanks form an important feeding resource.

“Cetaceans are relatively abundant in Irish waters and it is likely that there are greater feeding resources over sandbanks due to the hydrodynamic effects than surrounding waters.”