Mayo Deputy warns against closure of Cong Hatchery

Following his call for Government intervention on the closure of the Cong Hatchery, Aontú TD Paul Lawless has issued a renewed and urgent appeal to the Minister of State, Timmy Dooley, to visit the Cong Salmon Hatchery immediately. The Aontú TD warned that the decision by Inland Fisheries Ireland (IFI) to close the facility is now extremely time-sensitive, and risks becoming irreversible if action is not taken in the coming weeks.

Deputy Lawless stated: “For more than 60 years, the Cong Hatchery has protected the Corrib’s salmon population, supported angling tourism, and driven the local economy in Cong, Ballinrobe, and south Mayo. It is impossible to overstate how central this infrastructure is to the region. Its closure would cause enormous ecological and economic harm.”

Lawless stressed that the hatchery continues to deliver high conservation value, especially as wild salmon stocks across Ireland face a 90% collapse since the 1970s.

The Deputy continued: “At a time when salmon stocks are under unprecedented pressure from pollution, habitat loss, and environmental decline, removing the State’s last remaining smolt hatchery is reckless in the extreme. The timeline here is deeply concerning, decisions are being made behind closed doors, without consultation with the community, without analysis of the ecological consequences, and without understanding the impact on tourism.

“If this closure proceeds, reversing it will cost the State millions and could take years.”

The Deputy concluded: “I am again urging the Minister to come to Cong, visit the facility, meet those who rely on it, and see the value of this hatchery with his own eyes. Before this decision is finalised, the Minister must intervene. Once it’s gone, it’s gone. I am requesting that the Minister pause the closure, commission an independent review, and engage directly with the local community and scientific experts.”