Sir, - The incident off the Dublin and Wicklow coast which affected over a thousand seabirds, mainly guillemots and razorbills, has been widely reported in the media. As Ireland's largest conservation organisation, BirdWatch Ireland's role in an incident such as this is to provide expertise, monitor the coastline using staff and volunteer resources for a period of up to a month after the incident, and co ordinate and collate recoveries. It is imperative that all rehabilitated birds are ringed or banded, which will greatly aid in analysis of the effectiveness of the rehabilitation efforts.
Surely it is also timely to review port reception facilities for offloading waste oil, a practical measure which the Government can take to reduce the incidence of dumping at sea. We will continue to lobby for safeguards to the marine environment. Will the recommendations of the Donaldson report, issued in the wake of the Braer disaster off the Shetland Isles, be implemented here, particularly in light of the possible reactivation of the Whiddy Island terminal?
The efforts of members of the public, volunteers, vets and the animal welfare organisations are to be lauded, even if the odds for survival are stacked against the unfortunate birds beached along the East Coast shore. Regrettably, co ordination of the emergency response between non governmental organisations and the relevant government agencies wash less than satisfactory in the crucial first 48 hours. This suggests that we have not learned from recent experiences along the Wexford coast, in the wake of the Sea Empress disaster off Wales. - Yours, etc,
General manager, BirdWatch
Ireland,
Ruttledge House,
8 Longford Place,
Monkstown, Co. Dublin.