It has taken large Irish-owned trawlers less than two weeks to land the interim year’s quota of 2,000 tonnes of Sprat for 2025/2026, resulting in the closure of the Sprat fishery for vessels over 18 metres in total length.
The interim quota, set to run from 11 October 2025 to 30 September 2026, was introduced to provide a period of transition for trawler operators ahead of a ban on all trawling by larger vessels in Irish inshore waters set to come into force on 01 October 2026. On Thursday 23 October, just 12 days after the new quota came into force, the Sea Fisheries Protection Authority (SFPA) informed Fisheries Minister Timmy Dooley that licensed vessels had landed the allocated 2,000 tonne quota, and he closed the fishery to vessels over 18m.
“We’re delighted,” said William Helps, wildlife artist, recreational angler and a founder member of community marine advocacy group Save Our Sprat West Cork. “This is a win for the environment, a win for marine conservation, and a definite step in the right direction.”
“Those of us who have watched this destructive fishery for the past 25 years consider this a big win,” added Pádraig Whooley of Save Our Sprat West Cork, who is also the Sightings Officer with the Irish Whale and Dolphin Group (IWDG).
Interestingly, several of the larger West Cork-based trawlers opted not to fish for Sprat locally, and instead followed the large whales up the west coast to Donegal Bay, where they found enough Sprat to hit their licensed quota in short order.
“The fact West Cork boats elected to motor all the way to Donegal to target Sprat this year says a lot about the state they’ve left the inshore marine ecosystem in down here,” commented Calvin Jones, of Save Our Sprat West Cork and Ireland’s Wildlife. “Thanks to relentless overexploitation by these same vessels, there simply aren’t enough Sprat off the south coast to make fishing for them worth their while.”
While it is good news that the quota has been met, and the Sprat fishery is now closed to these industrial-scale vessels, the fact over-18 metre boats hit the 2,000 tonne quota so quickly is a sobering reminder of how much damage these powerful industrial trawlers, with their sophisticated modern gear, can inflict on vulnerable fish populations. In just 12 days these boats landed almost the equivalent of the ICES (International Convention for the Exploration of the Seas) annual total recommended catch limit for Sprat for the entire Irish fleet (currently 2,240 tonnes).
With large industrial vessels now excluded from the Sprat fishery, Save Our Sprat West Cork hopes the Sprat that remain will have some respite to recover. However, that will depend on how the still unregulated smaller inshore vessels respond, and on the ability of the legislation banning over-18m vessels to withstand potential legal challenge. A similar ban introduced by the Irish Government in 2018 was overturned by a High Court Judicial Review on a legal technicality. We expect trawler operators will launch a similar challenge through the courts this time around, and while government sources are confident that the legislation this time is more robust, there is no way to know for sure how such a legal challenge will play out.
Save Our Sprat West Cork will continue to monitor the situation as it evolves, and will continue to do everything we can to save Sprat, and to restore the thriving inshore marine ecosystems our coastal communities depend on.