New €10m scheme to conserve native freshwater pearl mussel
A NEW €10m scheme to fund the conservation of the native freshwater pearl mussel was launched by the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Michael Creed, today.
Eight river catchments have been selected for the Pearl Mussel Project. Farmers with lands in these catchments will be eligible to join the Pearl Mussel Project farm programme once it is established.
There is one Mayo catchment in the programme - Bundorragha, near Killary Harbour, in Leenane.
The freshwater pearl mussel is an endangered species which is found in near-pristine freshwater habitats. They are Ireland’s longest living animal, living for up to 140 years. Filter feeders, they can help to maintain and improve water quality.
European populations have declined by 90% over the past century and face extinction unless action is taken. This programme seeks to address the key pressures on the mussel by using a results-based approach on farms within the eight SPA catchments.
Speaking at the launch, Minister Creed said: “This programme is one of our flagship results-based schemes under our RDP which we marked from the start as a key priority. I am delighted that the new programme has now begun and is open for applications by farmers.
“This project has the two-fold benefit of delivering both biodiversity and water quality improvements.”
The new locally-led programme brings farmers, farm advisors, scientists and researchers together to deliver a targeted landscape level intervention which places the farmer at the heart of the process. Farmer consultation was a key element of the development process for the programme and the opinions and feedback collected from hundreds of farmers were incorporated into the final design.
Project manager Patrick Crushell said: “The management of farmland has a direct influence on water quality and priority is creating high quality farmland habitats that work for the farmers and deliver real socio-economic benefits to the areas concerned.”
For more on the project, see www.pearlmusselproject.ie.