merrion street

In the first of a series of engagements in Indonesia and Malaysia during the coming week, the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine Michael Creed T.D. will address the Our Ocean Conference being held in Nusa Dua, Bali on 29^th and 30^th October.  The Our Ocean series of conferences began in the USA in 2014 with the aim of bringing the international community together to generate global action for safe, secure and healthy oceans.  Minister Creed will join with representatives of international governments, business, NGOs, foundations, research institutes and international organisations in presenting commitments that will contribute to the protection and sustainable use of the world’s oceans.

Discussions will focus on the areas of maritime security, marine pollution, sustainable fisheries, climate change, the blue economy and marine litter with Minister Creed taking part in the panel discussion on climate change in the afternoon of 29^th October.

Irish commitments at the conference include the provision of €25 million to assist in the procurement of a new 50m modern research vessel that will provide critical national infrastructure to enable Ireland to address the considerable challenges of Brexit and the Common Fisheries Policy as well as climate induced impacts on our oceans.  The vessel will be used to undertake fisheries research, oceanographic and environmental research, and seabed mapping and surveys, and will also be tasked with maintaining and deploying weather buoys, observational infrastructure and Remotely Operated Vehicles.

Speaking in advance of the conference, Minister Creed said; “there are many challenges posed and threats in relation to our oceans and research is an intrinsic part of formulating a sustainable approach to the use, understanding and management of our oceans.  In 2017, Ireland committed over €6 million in funding in the areas of seabed mapping and marine research & development and this year’s commitment further demonstrates our dedication to adequately resourcing our marine research community to carry out their role.’’