Geo-UK Portmarnock Nearshore and Cable Landfall Survey … · Nearshore and Cable Landfall Survey...

Noordhoek Survey B.V. On behalf of

Geo-UK

Portmarnock

Nearshore and Cable Landfall Survey

Environmental Review Report

May 2011

Volume 1: Environmental Review (CS0307/R4/V1)

Titan Environmental Surveys Ltd

Coastal Surveys

Titan Environmental Surveys Ltd Coastal Surveys

For

Noordhoek Survey B.V.

On behalf of

Geo-UK

Portmarnock

Nearshore and Cable Landfall Survey

Environmental Review Report

May 2011

Volume 1: Environmental Review (CS0307/R4/V1)

Prepared By:

Titan Environmental Surveys Ltd

Gill Lock (Principal Environmental Consultant) Orion House

Parc Crescent

Checked By: .............................................................. Waterton Industrial Estate

Mark O’Donovan (Project Manager) Bridgend

South Wales

Authorised By: .............................................................. CF31 3XB

Malcolm Houston (Managing Director) Tel: 01656 673673

Fax: 01656 673674

Portmarnock Near Shore and Cable Landfall Survey

Environmental Review Report Titan Environmental Surveys Ltd

Contents

Executive Summary ............................................................................................................... i

1 Background to Project .............................................................................................. 1

1.1 Introduction ................................................................................................................... 1

1.2 Overview of Permitting for Proposed Cable Landfall .................................................... 1

1.3 Consultation .................................................................................................................. 2

1.4 Structure of Report........................................................................................................ 2

1.4.1 Environmental Review Methodology ....................................................................... 3

1.4.2 Assessment Criteria................................................................................................. 3

2 Project Description .................................................................................................... 6

2.1 Cable Route Selection Overview .................................................................................. 6

2.2 Project Overview ........................................................................................................... 6

2.3 Cable Installation .......................................................................................................... 7

2.3.1 Overview of Installation ........................................................................................... 7

2.3.2 Portmarnock Cable Landfall Construction Details ................................................... 7

2.3.3 Offshore Cable Installation ...................................................................................... 8

2.4 Operation and Decommissioning Phase....................................................................... 9

3 Portmarnock Landfall Site Baseline ...................................................................... 10

3.1 Designated Sites ......................................................................................................... 10

3.1.1 Designated Sites and their Features ..................................................................... 11

3.1.2 Initial Screening of Designated Features............................................................... 12

3.2 Intertidal Area.............................................................................................................. 15

3.2.1 Upper Beach Area ................................................................................................. 15

3.2.2 North Beach Habitat .............................................................................................. 16

3.2.3 Main Beach Habitat ............................................................................................... 16

3.3 Offshore Benthic Ecology ........................................................................................... 17

3.4 Marine Mammals ........................................................................................................ 18

3.5 Fish, Commercial Fisheries and Recreational Fishing................................................ 19

3.5.1 Commercial Fisheries ............................................................................................ 19

3.5.2 Spawning Grounds and Nurseries ......................................................................... 23

3.5.3 Recreational Fisheries ........................................................................................... 24

3.5.4 Fish Overview ........................................................................................................ 24

3.6 Landscape and Tourism ............................................................................................. 24

4 Assessment of Potential Impacts and Mitigation ................................................. 26

4.1 Construction Impacts and Mitigation ........................................................................... 26

4.1.1 Designated Sites.................................................................................................... 26

4.1.2 Upper Beach .......................................................................................................... 27

4.1.3 Intertidal Area ........................................................................................................ 27

4.1.4 Offshore Benthic Ecology ...................................................................................... 27



4.1.5 Marine Mammals ................................................................................................... 28

4.1.6 Fish, Commercial Fisheries and Recreational Fishing .......................................... 28

4.1.7 Landscape and Tourism ........................................................................................ 29

4.2 Operation Impacts and Mitigation ............................................................................... 29

4.3 Decommissioning Impacts and Mitigation................................................................... 30

5 Summary of Assessment and Mitigation .............................................................. 31

6 Conclusion ............................................................................................................... 38

7 References ............................................................................................................... 39

List of Figures

Figure 1.1 Overview of Proposed Cable Route

Figure 3.1 Location of SPAs and cSACs in relation to Portmarnock

Figure 3.2 Plan View of Portmarnock Beach (N)

Figure 3.3 Overview of Species Recorded on Portmarnock Beach (end of report)

Figure 3.4 Extract of Seabed Habitats off Portmarnock from EUSeaMap

Figure 3.5 Scallop, crab, whelk fishing grounds chart

Figure 3.6 Bottom Longline VMS Data

Figure 3.7 VMS data for Beam Trawl 2007 – 2008

Figure 3.8 VMS data for Otter Trawl 2008

Figure 3.9 Historic Nephrops Trawl Grounds

Figure 3.10 Landscape Character and Protect Areas

List of Photos

Photo 2.1 Portmarnock Approximate Beach Manhole Location

Photo 2.2 Porth Dafarch Approximate Beach Manhole Location

Photo 2.3 Portmarnock Beach Interface

Photo 3.1 View of north Portmarnock Beach

Photo 3.2 Upper Beach Manhole

Photo 3.3 North Beach Area

Photo 3.4 Fine filamentous algae

Photo 3.5 Brittle Star

Photo 3.6 Broken shells on raised sand areas

Photo 3.7 Fishing off Velvet Strand

Photo 3.8 Horse Exercising on Beach

List of Tables

Table 1.1 Potential Value of Ecological Receptors (Adapted from IEEM, 2010)

Table 1.2 Assessing the Magnitude of Each Impact on an Ecological Receptor

Table 1.3 Ecological Impact Significance



Table 3.1 Habitats Regulations Assessment: Key Stages

Table 3.2 Designated Sites near Portmarnock and Summary of Key Features

Table 3.3 Summary and Initial Screening of Features of Natura 2000 sites

Table 3.4 Summary of Marine Mammals in Irish Sea

Table 3.5 Summary of Fish Spawning and Nursery Grounds off Portmarnock

Appendices

Appendix 1 Summary of Consultation Responses



Executive Summary

Geo Networks Ltd propose to install a high quality fibre optic cable across the Irish Sea. The cable will

be repeater-less with the shortest sub-sea section, giving the most reliable and lowest latency solution.

The cable will link Portmarnock, north of Dublin to Porth Dafarch on Holy Island, Anglesey.

The fibre optic cable will be a 96 fibre bundle with a diameter of 3cm. It will be double armour protected

and steel clamps will be used for additional protection giving an overall cable diameter of 5cm. The

beach manhole chamber is to be located in an amenity grassed area beside a low stonewall adjacent to

the main R106 coast road. The intertidal cable route will follow predominantly sandy substrate. It will be

placed on the beach and buried to a depth of 2m wherever possible from a Beach Manhole to low water

mark, and to a depth of 1m from the low water mark to the 12m contour and beyond. The onshore

manhole and cable laying work is anticipated to take about 3-5 days. The offshore cable laying will take

approximately 16 - 20 days for the entire route.

Portmarnock Overview

Portmarnock beach, otherwise known as Velvet Strand, is a large sandy beach which extends some

5km in a north south direction along a peninsula towards the port of Dublin. The access point to the

beach is at its northern end, from the R106 coast road. Here there is on-road parking and a public car

park within immediate walking distance. The main beach sits at a lower level than the upper beach area

and is accessed via a short concrete road leading to a slipway. The top of the slip is blocked to non-

emergency vehicles by a pair of metal gates. The upper beach comprises a grassed area which has

vertical timbers adjoining the lower beach boundary. The grassed area extends from the slipway, along

the top of the beach for a distance of approximately 380m, to some fenced sand dunes. A tarmac

footpath runs the length of the grassed area, before turning inland at the sand dunes. The footpath is

also bisected halfway along with an access to the main public car park. At the northern boundary of the

beach are bathing steps which lead down to the edge of a rocky shore. The rocky shore runs

northwards around the coast towards Malahide Estuary.

The beach is designated under the EC Bathing Water Directive and, after two previous successive

years of good water quality, it regained the coveted Blue Flag Award. In terms of ecology, although the

beach and the landfall location itself are not designated, the adjacent coast either side of Portmarnock

has a number of designated candidate Special Area of Conservation (cSAC) and Special Protection

Area (SPA) sites.

The intertidal and subtidal ecology of the area is strongly influenced by the sandy substrate, with

polychaete worms (ragworm and lugworms) and bivalve shells such as cockles and razors shells being

recorded. As would be expected, the rocky area at the north of the beach, which forms the southern

extend of Malahide cSAC, shows greater species diversity and abundance. In terms of fish and

commercial fisheries, the area off Portmarnock extending northward is identified as spawning and

nursery grounds for a number of key commercial species. With regard to fishing activity, the main one

off Portmarnock beach appears to be suction dredging for Cockles or Razor Shells, which is undertaken

by local boats. The Irish Sea as a whole is important for other fishing practices such as otter trawling

and beam trawling, but the main areas of activity appear to be to the north of the cable route.

Finally, there is a wide range of marine mammal species recorded around the Irish Coast. In addition to

this Atlantic Grey Seal (Halichoerus grypus) is found at Lambay Island cSAC which is approximately

8km off Portmarnock’s coast.

Assessment of Effect As identified above, the proposed cable landfall area is not located within any internationally designated site and no direct impact to any protected habitat or species is envisaged. In terms of indirect effects, there exists the potential to disturb birds of the SPAs or their food source, and there is potential for indirect effects on the rocky shore which marks the southern extent of Malahide Estuary cSAC. As discussed above there is one Annex II species, namely Atlantic Grey Seal which breeds on Lambay Island and therefore this species, and other marine mammals, may be potentially affected by offshore works.



In terms of indirect disturbance to birds the proposed land based works will be short in duration. In addition, the northern end of Velvet Strand, where the works is located, is the main beach access area and as such subject to increased recreational use. Birds of the SPA using this area would be expected to be acclimatised to a certain degree of noise and disturbance. As a result, it is assessed that the short duration of construction noise and activity should be within the birds tolerance range and no indirect impact is anticipated.

In terms of potential effects from the cable laying vessel on the breeding seabird’s food source (fish) the

works will be short in duration 16 - 20 days for the entire cable route (Ireland-Wales). There will be

some localised disturbance to the seabed and surrounding area from ploughing, but this will be minimal

compared to current fishing practices off the beach. As such no indirect impacts on the birds are

anticipated.

For Atlantic Grey Seal and other marine mammals offshore, the cable laying vessels will be slow

moving with minimal underwater moving parts. The activity would be similar to laying lobster pots and

has been assessed as a lesser risk to marine mammals compared with, for instance, trawling. As such

the potential impact to marine mammals during cable installation is assessed to be neutral and therefore

there should be no impact overall.

The manhole and some cable trenching on the upper beach is to be located in the grassed area. With good construction practices; minimising damage to the surrounding grassed area; and re-seeding of any damaged areas, there should be no long term impact. In terms of the upper beach interface, if conditions permit the option of a trenchless technology such as moling would be considered. Notwithstanding this discussions would be held with the Local Council in advance of the work, and the timbers would be reinstated to their existing condition.

On the sandy shore the cable will be laid and buried during low tide, thereby minimising indirect impacts

through suspended solids on the rocky shore habitat some 250m to the north. The trench will be

approximately 0.5m wide down the length of the sandy beach. This will result in a localised impact on

the ecology, however, the excavated sand will be backfilled and therefore any marine fauna such as

ragworms and lugworms will be able to re-colonise the area. Overall, sandy habitat species tend to be

more robust and able to recover more rapidly from temporary impacts. It is therefore assessed that the

direct and indirect impacts from the cable laying will be minor as they will be short term, temporary and

localised and the impact is assessed to be Insignificant.

Offshore there will be minor localised impacts to marine ecology along the cable route through sediment

disturbance during trenching. However, many of the benthic species exposed by the works would be

expected to rebury themselves and therefore survive the temporary event. In terms of suspended

sediments, there will be a localised increase in suspended sediments as ploughing and cable laying

takes place. Suspended sediments will be carried varying distances depending on particle size and the

tidal state, eventually re-settling on the seabed. In terms of indirect impact this is assessed to be of

minor significance due to the small amount of sediments anticipated to be disturbed. Overall the cable

laying activity should be significantly less disruptive in terms of direct and indirect impacts when

compared to cockle and razor shell fishing practices and as such the overall indirect impact on local

benthos is assessed to be insignificant.

No direct impact to fish is envisaged as the cable laying vessel will be slow moving enabling fish to

move away from both the area of disturbance and localised increased levels of suspended sediments.

Once the cable laying vessel has passed over an area the fish will be able to move back.

In terms of fish spawning/nurseries grounds the proposed cable laying works will only affect a narrow

area of seabed and the works will be short in duration. Although there may be direct and indirect

impacts to spawning or juvenile fish, the impact from the cable laying vessel will be much less than that

experienced from current fishing practices in the area. The magnitude of potential impact on fish

spawning/nursery grounds during cable laying is assessed to be within the range normally experienced

offshore and therefore there should be no impact.

As the cable laying vessel will not be able to move off its given route during cable laying, good

communication will be required in advance to ensure that there is no interaction between fishing vessels

and the cable vessel. The works will be confined to a narrow corridor and with an appropriate safety



distance suction dredging for shellfish could be able to continue. Due to the short duration of work (3-4

days), the magnitude of potential impact on commercial fishing during cable laying is assessed as minor

to neutral, giving an overall assessment of minor adverse to insignificant impact.

The manhole area on the upper beach will be fenced for health and safety reasons and the siting of the

compound will be positioned to avoid the footpaths and minimise disturbance to users of the area. Care

will be taken to minimise damage to the surrounding grassed area, however, if any grassed areas are

damaged, re-seeding will be undertaken on completion.

For health and safety reasons, access to the working area on the beach will also be restricted when the

cable is being laid and buried and then taken onto the offshore vessel. This is only like to be for a short

period (approximately 2 days). Notwithstanding this in order to minimise disruption and disturbance to

local users and visitors during construction it would be proposed to undertaken the works outside of the

bathing season (mid May to September) and school holiday period. If possible weekends would also be

avoided for the beach cable laying, but these works will be influenced by the timing of the offshore

works and weather. Discussions would be held in advance with the Local Councils concerning the

onshore works. If the works are timed to be outside the main tourist season and avoid holidays, the

short-term temporary impact on landscape and tourism during the construction phase is assessed to be

Minor to Neutral resulting in a short term minor adverse impact to no impact.

Once operational the proposed cable has a theoretical design life of 25-40 years. There will be no

surface structure associated with the manhole and the cable will be buried along the route. The

proposed cable system is short length fibre optic cables without repeaters, and as such there would be

no associated electric or magnetic fields. Under normal operating conditions there should be no impact

from the operation of the cable. If maintenance work is required this would result in similar effects to

those identified for installation.

Decommissioning of the cable would be reviewed nearer the time and the most appropriate option,

including leaving in-situ would be considered.

Portmarnock Near Shore and Cable Landfall Survey Page 1


1 Background to Project

1.1 Introduction Geo Networks Ltd proposes to install a high quality fibre optic cable between Anglesey, North

Wales and Dublin, Ireland. The proposal will introduce dedicated high quality data networking

services using superior fibre materials which will help develop a truly enabling infrastructure for

the UK and Irish economies.

This cable will be repeater-less with the shortest subsea section, providing the most reliable and

lowest latency solution and allowing the most direct route from London to Dublin. The cable will

link Portmarnock, north of Dublin to Holy Island on Anglesey, landing the cable at Porth Dafarch

(Figure 1.1).

Figure 1.1 Overview of Proposed Cable Route

To limit disruption the proposed route will closely follow, with adequate clearance, the existing BT

Eircom cable BT-TE 1. This cable was installed in 1988 and taken out of service in 2007.

At the landfall locations the proposed cable would be connected to a new beach manhole

(underground structure) to ensure separation from existing cables at both landfall sites. In order

to minimise potential impacts the construction and installation of the cable will be very similar to

previous telecommunication cable system projects and once installed should not result in any

impact to the environment.

This report will present an environmental review of the landfall site at Portmarnock, Ireland out to

12 nautical miles (nm) from shore. The aim of the report is to identify any key potential issues

associated with the works and propose mitigation measures, where appropriate. The information

contained within this report will be submitted in support of the application for the relevant

consents as discussed in the following section. Similar information with regard to the permitting of

the cable landfall at Porth Dafarch can be found in Titan Environmental Surveys report

CS0307/R3/V1.

1.2 Overview of Permitting for Proposed Cable Landfall

In the Republic of Ireland following on from the enactment of the Foreshore and Dumping at Sea

(Amendment) Act 2009, responsibility for certain foreshore functions has transferred to the

Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government with effect from 15 January 2010.



The Foreshore Acts 1933-2005 require that a lease or licence must be obtained from the Minister

for undertaking any works or placing structures or material on, or for the occupation of or removal

of material from, State owned foreshore which represents the greater part of the foreshore. The

Minister has absolute discretion to accept or reject a proposal to use state-owned foreshore.

The foreshore is the seabed and shore below the line of high water of ordinary or medium tides

and extends outwards to the limit of twelve nautical miles (approximately 22.24 kilometres).

The Foreshore Acts can be cited collectively as the Foreshore Acts 1933 to 2005 and comprises

the following:

• Foreshore Act 1933

• Foreshore (Amendment) Act, 1992

• Section 5 of the Fisheries and Foreshore (Amendment) Act 1998

• Fisheries (Amendment) Act, 2003 (Part 5)

• Maritime Safety Act 2005 No. 11 (Part 6)

• Foreshore and Dumping at Sea (Amendment) Act 2009

• Consolidated Foreshore Acts (Unofficial)

In terms of the land based components discussions will be held with Fingal County Council and if

required a planning application will be submitted for the cable entry onto the beach and the beach

manhole.

1.3 Consultation

As part of the standard application processing procedure, the Department Environment, Heritage

and Local Government (DEHLG) Foreshore Unit would consult with a range of statutory

consultees including the relevant local planning authority (Fingal County Council). However, to

ensure that all key stakeholders are informed of the project and to ensure that any potential

issues are identified at an early stage and addressed, consultation has been undertaken. The

consultation commenced during the development of the project and site survey phase.

Consultation will be maintained throughout the consenting process and construction of the

project. The key consultees that have been contacted during this project are presented below and

a summary of their responses is given in Appendix 1.

� DEHLG - Underwater Archaeology

� DEHLG - Engineering Division

� DEHLG - Foreshore Unit

� Federation of Irish Fishermen

� Irish Wildlife Trust

� Marine Survey Office

� Marine Institute of Ireland

1.4 Structure of Report

The content of the environmental review report has been based on comments received during the

initial consultation and professional judgement. The main issues identified with the project are

linked to the ecology associated with the designations in the vicinity of the landfall and fishing

activity offshore. The environmental review report has been structured in the following way:



1. Introduction – A brief project summary has been provided, the permitting requirements and

the objective of environmental report. Information has also been given on the early cable

route desk study consultation as well as additional consultation associated with the project to

date. Finally the assessment methods used to determine the potential impacts of the project

are presented.

2. Project Description – A brief overview has been provided of the cable route selection process

and the proposed route corridor between the two landfall points. Information is then given on

the proposed cable laying methods, proposed timescales for undertaking the work, and future

operation, maintenance and decommissioning requirements.

3. Baseline at Portmarnock – The baseline situation includes a review of the key ecological

designations in the area; determination of the ecological baseline of intertidal route corridor

and surrounding beach; an overview of offshore ecology extending out to 12nm, marine

mammals and commercial fisheries. In addition to this information on other issues such as

landscape and tourism within the local area is provided.

4. Assessment of Impacts – An assessment of potential effects during construction,

operation/maintenance and decommissioning has been undertaken. Where appropriate,

mitigation measures have been provided.

5. Summary – the results of the assessment within the environmental review report and

mitigation measures proposed have been summarised in tabular format.

6. Conclusion – the overall conclusion of the report have been presented.

1.4.1 Environmental Review Methodology

The environmental review has been based on:

• a review of existing available literature,

• Information from Geo Networks UK,

• Internet data search,

• feedback from consultation, and

• site walkover survey of the landfall location undertaken on 24-25th March 2011.

For each target subject area baseline conditions have been identified which include key

designations appropriate to the area and the findings of site survey. Subsequent to this the

potential impacts of the cable installation process have been identified and where appropriate

mitigation measure proposed. A summary of the findings of the assessment is provided in tabular

format.

1.4.2 Assessment Criteria

To assess the impacts of the proposed cable route on the inter-tidal and subtidal flora and fauna,

guidelines of the Institute of Ecology and Environmental Management (IEEM) 2010 have been

used. The method firstly determines the value of the receiving receptor (site/feature/species) and

secondly, the magnitude of the potential impact on the receptor, in order to provide an overall

impact score and therefore, the predicted impact significance. The value of each receptor of

nature conservation interest has been based on the biodiversity evaluation methods identified in

the Guidelines for Ecological Impact Assessment in the Britain and Ireland, Marine and Coastal

(IEEM, 2010). Table 1.1 shows examples of how the nature conservation value of a variety of

site/feature/species is determined.



Table 1.1 Potential Value of Ecological Receptors (Adapted from IEEM, 2010)

Level of Value Examples

International (Very High)

• An internationally designated site or candidate site (SPA (Special Protection Area), pSPA (potential Special Protection Area), SAC (Special Area of Conservation), cSAC (candidate Special Area of Conservation), pSAC (possible Special Area of Conservation), Ramsar site, Biogenetic Reserve) or an area which the country agency has determined meets the published selection criteria for such designation, irrespective of whether or not it has yet been notified.

• Internationally significant and viable areas of a habitat type listed in Annexe 1 of the

Habitats Directive.

• Regularly occurring, globally threatened species (i.e. IUCN Red listed) or species

listed on Annex 1 of the Berne Convention.

• Regularly occurring populations of internationally important species that are rare or

threatened in the UK/Ireland or of uncertain conservation status.

• A regularly occurring, nationally significant population/number of any internationally important species.

National (High)

• A nationally designated site (SSSI (Site of Special Scientific Interest), Natural Heritage Area (NHA), NNR (National Nature Reserve), MNR (Marine Nature Reserve)) or a discrete area, which the country conservation agency has determined meets the published selection criteria for national designation (e.g. SSSI selection guidelines) irrespective of whether or not it has yet been notified.

Regional/ County (Medium)

• Viable areas of key habitat identified in the Regional/County BAP or smaller areas of such habitat which are essential to maintain the viability of a larger whole;

• Viable areas of key habitat identified as being of Regional value in the appropriate Natural Area profile;

• Any regularly occurring significant population that is listed in a Local Red Data Book

(RDB).

• Significant populations of a regionally/county important species.

District / Borough (Low)

• Areas of habitat identified in a sub-County (District/Borough) BAP or in the relevant Natural Area profile;

• District sites that the designating authority has determined meet the published ecological selection criteria for designation, including Local Nature Reserves selected on District/Borough ecological criteria (District sites, where they exist, will often have been identified in local plans);

• Sites/features that are scarce within the District/Borough or which appreciably enrich the District/Borough habitat resource;

Parish/Local (Negligible)

• Areas of habitat considered to appreciably enrich the habitat resource within the context of the Parish, e.g. species-rich hedgerows.

• No site designation.

• Species present are common and widespread.

N.B Where species or habitats occur in more than one category above, the highest value is applicable.

The potential impact on the receptor is assessed giving consideration to the following aspects:

• Positive or negative - Is the impact likely to be good or bad for the feature/species?

• Magnitude - What size' or ‘amount’ of an impact is there?

• Extent - The extent of the impact (that is the full area over which the impact occurs).

• Duration - The duration over which the impact is expected to last prior to recovery or replacement of the feature.

• Reversibility - is it irreversible (permanent) impact from which recovery is not possible or is it reversible (temporary) impact one from which spontaneous recovery is possible.

• Timing and frequency - Some changes may only cause an impact if they happen to coincide with critical life-stages or seasons. The frequency of how often the activity/impact will happen.

The magnitude of the potential impact is then assessed for each receptor using the categories set

out in Table 1.2 below.



Table 1.2 Assessing the Magnitude of Each Impact on an Ecological Receptor

Impact description Criteria

Major Negative

The change is likely to cause a permanent adverse effect on the integrity of an ecological receptor. The proposed development will have effects which would adversely impact on the integrity of a site (at regional to international level).

Intermediate Negative

The proposed development will not adversely impact upon the integrity of a site, but the effect on the site is likely to be significant in terms of its ecological objectives (e.g. key attributes of a site will be altered, but not so much as to result in a change in the site’s evaluation).

The proposed development will have permanent and severe impacts upon undesignated habitats of county importance.

The proposed development will result in changes in the distribution of a legally protected species, but not affect its population status or conservation status but the population will become more vulnerable.

Minor Negative Neither of the above applies, although some negative impact to a designated site or undesignated habitat of regional / county importance is evident.

The proposed development will have permanent and severe impacts upon undesignated habitats of local / negligible importance.

The proposed development will have an adverse affect on a legally protected species but with no significant reduction in conservation status.

Neutral Although it is not always possible to state categorically that there will be no impact on a receptor the term neutral will be used where the level of exposure is considered to be less than the tolerance of the receptor, therefore an impact is unlikely.

Or there will be no impact at all on that habitat or species/faunal group.

Positive The change is likely to benefit the receptor in terms of its conservation status, but not so far as to achieve favourable conservation status.

Based on the value of the receptor and the predicted magnitude of the potential impact, the

significance of an impact can then be determined according to Table 1.3. Residual impact is the

significance of impact considered after mitigation measures have been taken into account.

Table 1.3 Ecological Impact Significance

Nature

Conservation

Value

Magnitude of Potential Impact

Major

Negative

Intermediate

Negative

Minor

Negative

Neutral Positive

International/

Very High

Very Major

Adverse

Major Adverse Moderate to

Minor Adverse

No Impact

Major - minor

Beneficial

National/ High Very Major

Adverse

Major Adverse Minor Adverse No Impact

Major - minor

Beneficial

Regional/

Medium

Moderate

Adverse

Moderate –

Minor Adverse

Minor Adverse No Impact

Moderate

Beneficial

District/ Low Minor

Adverse

Minor Adverse Minor Adverse No Impact

Minor Beneficial

Local/Negligible Minor/

Insignificant

Insignificant

Insignificant No Impact Insignificant



2 Project Description

2.1 Cable Route Selection Overview In order to ensure that the potential effects of the installation of the proposed cable route on

surrounding environment are minimised, a phased approach has been undertaken. The phased

approach initially entailed a detailed baseline desk based assessment and route selection study.

The desk based assessment looked at a range of issues including bathymetry, seismicity,

topography, geological setting, fishing, shipping and anchorage, dumping, dredging, existing

cables and pipelines, conservation areas, military activities, charted obstructions and wrecks,

marine archaeology and marine exploitation. The results of the baseline assessment (Global

Marine Systems Ltd, 2009) were used to identify appropriate landfall locations and a route

corridor for the cable. The report also highlighted any key issues along the route which would

require further investigation.

Subsequent to the desk based assessment, offshore and intertidal survey work was undertaken

in March 2011. The offshore work included Side Scan Sonar, Sub Bottom Profiler and swath

Bathymetry, Burial Assessment Survey using 2m Cone Penetration Tests, seabed cores at 4km

intervals and Magnetometer tests along a 500m corridor of the cable route. Intertidal works

comprised ecological survey, topographical survey and sand depth penetration tests to determine

the best route to achieve the required cable burial depth. In addition to this a detailed

archaeological assessment was undertaken across all areas likely to be affected by the proposed

works. The results of the survey will be used to finely align the cable to achieve the desired burial

depth and minimise potential impacts on the surrounding environment.

2.2 Project Overview As discussed previously it is proposed to lay a high quality fibre optic cable between Portmarnock

near Dublin, Ireland and Anglesey, North Wales. The fibre optic cable will be a 96 fibre bundle

with a diameter of 3cm. The cable will be double armour protected and steel clamps will also be

used for additional cable protection giving an overall cable diameter of 5cm.

The two landfall locations have been selected due to their good beach conditions which will allow

suitable burial for the cable and good accessibility for installation works.

The Portmarnock land fall location is at the north end of Velvet Strand, a 5km long sandy beach.

The northern end of the beach is accessed via the R106, Strand Road. In the locality of the

landfall there is a public car park, on road parking, public toilets, concrete steps and bathing area

as well as a gated concrete slipway to the foreshore. On the far side of the road there is

residential housing and a small local shop and eating places. The beach manhole is to be located

in an amenity grassed area adjacent to a low lying stone wall between the beach and main road

(Photo 2.1).

Photo 2.1 Portmarnock Approximate Beach Manhole Location



The Porth Dafarch landfall site is a more rural location situated beside the B4545 coastal road,

approximately 2.5km from Trearddur Bay. The beach is accessed down a parallel concrete road

which runs down to and ends just beyond the top of a small slipway onto the beach. There is

informal road side parking at the top of the concrete access road or down its side. The beach

manhole is to be located to the west of the beach slipway (Photo 2.2). Coastal improvement

works were being undertaken at the beach during the site during the visit in March 2011. The

works included the construction of public toilet block and bicycle parking. Further details of the

Porth Dafarch site and the proposed works can be found in Titan Environmental Surveys report

CS0307/R3/V1.

The wider cable route has been selected to broadly follow the existing but decommissioned BT-

TE1 cable (with suitable separation buffer). During its operation the BT-TE 1 cable had a good

fault history indicating that following a similar route was a good option. Small alterations to the

provisional route were made to provide greater separation from the Kish Basin oil concession

licence areas, and to improve the encounter with seabed gradients west of Holy Island. In March

2011 offshore bathymetric and onshore topographical survey was undertaken along a route

corridor of 250m either side of the centre line. The results of the surveys have then been used to

refine the route alignment such that the optimum route in terms of minimising potential impacts

and gaining the required burial depth has been achieved.

The total length of the proposed route from Portmarnock to Porth Dafarch is 116.5km.

2.3 Cable Installation

2.3.1 Overview of Installation

The cable laying activities will commence at Portmarnock, with a pre-laid shore end. The cable

will then be laid across the Irish Sea to Porth Dafarch where a direct shore end lay is planned

from the main-lay vessel.

The works will comprise the simultaneous lay and burial of the cable to a depth of 2m (wherever

possible) from Beach Manhole to low water mark, and to a depth of 1m from the low water mark

to the 12m contour. If the desired burial depth cannot be achieved additional cable protection will

be provided. To give flexibility during installation, at each beach landfall end, a minimum of 40

metres of cable will be looped in the slack pit which will be installed between the Beach Man Hole

and the low water mark.

2.3.2 Portmarnock Cable Landfall Construction Details

The beach manhole chamber is to be located in an amenity grassed area adjacent to a low stonewall bordering the main R106 coast road. Discussions will be held with the local Council to ensure that all requirements are put in place to minimise disruptions to users of the area prior to works commencing. The working area will be approximately the size of a mobile truck / container.

Photo 2.2 Porth Dafarch Approximate Beach Manhole Location



The working area will be barricaded using appropriate warning signs and safety barriers and existing services located and marked for avoidance.

The excavated chamber will be approximately 900mm

deep, 1m wide by 800mm. Where required the sides of

the chamber will be temporarily shored to prevent fall of

materials. The manhole works will comprise the

formation of a concrete base with a brickwork surround,

fitted with a level frame cover. Once constructed the

area around the chamber will be backfilled and

reinstated to previous conditions and the area left clean

and tidy.

The cable ducting will then be laid from the beach

manhole across the grassed area to the top of the

beach. At the grassed bank-beach interface there is a

distinct drop in height with the area being supported by

upright timbers. Some of these timbers are displaced

(Photo 2.3). In terms of laying the cable from the

grassed area to the beach two options would be review

with the local Council – either open cut with

reinstatement of the area and timbers or the use of a

trenchless technology such as moling. Photo 2.3 Portmarnock Beach Interface

A pre-laid shore end is planned at Portmarnock and a direct shore end at Porth Dafarch from the

main-lay vessel. Both shore ends will be fitted with articulated pipe from the Beach Manhole to

the Low Water Mark. At low water the cable will be laid along the foreshore to the Low Water

Mark (LWM) and buried. The cable trench will be approximately 2m deep by 0.5m wide. The

trench will be dug by an excavator and articulated pipe will be placed in the trench for additional

protection. Once the cable is installed inside the trench it will be back filled using the excavated

material and the beach working corridor will be graded back to its original condition. On

completion of the cable installation phase, the beach equipment and any waste materials will be

removed from the site and the area will be restored to as close to its original condition as is

reasonably possible.

It is anticipated that construction of the beach manhole will take approximately 2-3 days and the

trench section to the LWM approximately 1-2 days. In the event that beach works remain

uncompleted before nightfall, suitable security and low level illumination will be provided.

2.3.3 Offshore Cable Installation

The proposed main offshore cable lay installation activity is anticipated to take around 16 to 20

days. The works will proceed once all the required consents are in place.

A pre-lay grapnel run to remove any seabed hazards such as ropes fishing gear and other debris

will be carried out as close as is reasonably practicable to commencement of offshore installation

operations. The whole route shall be covered along the cable route centreline with the exception

of protected areas particularly those near (250m) in-service cables and pipelines.

The main cable section is proposed to be laid and buried as a continuous operation by plough.

Ploughing operations are planned to commence at approximately the 13m contour with a target

1m burial depth. The plough provides readings to verify depth of burial and shall allow minimum

pull trenchless burial with limited sediment disturbance. This will afford the best cable protection

in all conditions identified. The plough will be fully remote controlled including depth, cutting

control, hydraulic steering and stabilisation enabling operation in hard and soft conditions down to

5kPa and at speeds up to 1m/s.



2.4 Operation and Decommissioning Phase The proposed cable has a theoretical design life of 25-40 years. Under normal circumstances, the

cable will operate without any subsea works or routine maintenance. Should the cable be

damaged or develop a physical fault, marine repair work would be required. Generally this would

require a cable ship to grapnel and pull onboard the cable to allow cutting, insertion of a new

cable section and jointing operations. This would be undertaken onboard the vessel over a 1-3

day period.

Once beyond its operating life, given the inert nature of the cable, leaving it in place once out of

service will have the least environmental impact compared to removing it. However, depending

on the legislative requirements at the time, environmental and economic factors,

decommissioning options in the future would be reviewed and these may include, leaving in situ,

recovery and/or dismantling.



3 Portmarnock Landfall Site Baseline This Chapter sets the scene in terms of the baseline situation at the Portmarnock landfall site,

extending to 12nm offshore. The area has been reviewed in terms of onshore and offshore

ecology including statutorily protected habitats and species, benthic ecology, marine mammals

and fisheries. Information on other issues such as landscape and tourism is also presented. The

assessment of potential impacts during construction, operation and decommissioning is given in

Chapter 4 with an overall summary presented in Chapter 5.

3.1 Designated Sites Portmarnock is located on the west coast of Ireland approximately 15km from the centre of

Dublin. Although the beach and the landfall location itself are not designated, the coastal area

either side is important in terms of habitat and ecology. As such there are a number of

international and national designations which have been put in place to protect it. In terms of

international designations there are a number of candidate Special Area of Conservation (cSAC)

and Special Protection Area (SPA) in the vicinity. Candidate SAC are designated under the

Habitats Directive (92/43/EEC) which was transposed into Irish law in 1997 as the European

Communities (Natural Habitats) Regulations, 1997 (S.I. 94 of 1997). SPAs are designated under

the Birds Directive (79/409/EEC). Collectively the sites are referred to as Natura 2000 sites.

For Natura 2000 sites, the process by which the impacts of a project are assessed against the

conservation objectives of a European site is known as Habitats Regulations Assessment (HRA).

The HRA determines whether there will be any likely significant effects (LSE) on any European

site and, if so, whether these effects will result in an adverse effect on its integrity. The European

Commission guidance details a four-stage process (see table below) for HRA, although not all

stages are necessarily required:

Table 3.1 Habitats Regulations Assessment: Key Stages

Stage 1 Screening for likely significant effect

• Identify international sites within the influence of the plan agreed with the Statutory Body the National Parks and Wildlife Service.

• Examine conservation objectives of the interest feature(s) (where available).

• Review plan policies and proposals and consider potential effects on European sites (magnitude, duration, location, extent).

• Examine other plans and programmes that could contribute to ‘in combination’ effects.

• If no effects likely – report no significant effect (taking advice from NPWS as necessary).

• If effects are judged likely or uncertainty exists – the precautionary principle applies proceed to stage 2

Stage 2

Appropriate Assessment

• Complete additional scoping work including the collation of further information on sites as necessary to evaluate impact in light of conservation objectives.

• Agree scope and method of AA with NPWS.

• Consider how plan ‘in combination’ with other plans and programmes will interact when implemented (the Appropriate Assessment).

• Consider how effect on integrity of site could be avoided by changes to plan and the consideration of alternatives.

• Develop mitigation measures (including timescale and mechanisms).

• Report outcomes of AA including mitigation measures, consult with NPWS and wider [public] stakeholders as necessary.

• If plan will not significantly effect European site proceed without further reference to Habitats Regs.

• If effects or uncertainty remain following the consideration of alternatives and development of mitigations proceed to stage 3

Stage 3

Assessment of alternative solutions

• Consider alternative solutions, delete from plan or modify.

• Consider if priority species/ habitats remain affected.

Stage 4

Procedures where Significant effect on integrity of International site remains

• Identify ‘imperative reasons of overriding public interest’ (IROPI) economic, social, environmental, human health, public safety.

• Notify Irish Government.

• Develop and secure compensatory measures.



In terms of projects taking place outside, but in close proximity to a Natura 2000 site, as is the

case with this project, these might also be subject to appropriate assessment if it is considered

that the project may impact on the conservation interests of the site. The decision on the need for

further assessment is made by the National Parks and Wildlife Service Department of EHLG.

At a national level, National Heritage Areas (NHA) provide the mechanism for wildlife protection

within the Republic of Ireland. This is the basic legislative wildlife conservation tool enabling

designation and therefore protection of areas considered important for habitats or species of

plants and animals. To date, 75 raised bogs have been given legal protection. In addition, there

are 630 proposed NHAs (pNHAs), which were published on a non-statutory basis in 1995, but

have not since been statutorily proposed or designated. All of the marine based internationally

designated sites in proximity to Portmarnock are also pNHAs.

An initial review and assessment has been undertaken of the features of the internationally

designated sites near to the cable landfall point.

3.1.1 Designated Sites and their Features

There are six cSACs and six SPAs in the vicinity of Portmarnock: Table 3.2 below, summaries the

designated sites and their key features. Figure 3.1 shows the location of the cSAC and SPAs in

relation to the cable route corridor.

Table 3.2 Designated Sites near Portmarnock and Summary of Key Features Site Reason for Selection

Baldoyle Bay cSAC Baldoyle Bay SPA

Baldoyle Bay SAC is protected from the sea by a large dune system and features four habitats listed under the EC Habitats Directive (92/43/EEC): Salicornia and Other Annuals Colonising Mud and Sand (H1310), Atlantic salt meadows (H1330), Mediterranean salt meadows (H1410) and Mudflats and sandflats not covered by seawater at low tide (H1140).

Baldoyle Bay SPA - The inner section of Baldoyle Bay behind the peninsula is an important site for wintering waterfowl and is designated a SPA for internationally important populations of Pale-bellied Brent Geese (Branta bernicla). Nationally important populations of six waterfowl species are also present, including Bar-tailed Godwit (Limosa lapponica) and Golden Plover (Pluvialis apricaria), both of which are further protected under Annex I of the EC Birds Directive.

Malahide Estuary cSAC

The outer part of Malahide Estuary (H1130) is mostly cut off from the sea by a large sand spit, and drains almost completely at low tide, exposing sand and mud flats. There is a large bed of Eelgrass (Zostera noltii and Z. angustifolium) in the north section of the outer estuary, along with Tassel Weed (Ruppia maritima) and extensive mats of green algae (Enteromorpha spp., Ulva lactuca). The site includes a fine area of rocky shore south-east of Malahide and extending towards Portmarnock. This represents the only continuous section through the fossiliferous Lower Carboniferous rocks in the Dublin Basin, and is the type locality for several species of fossil coral.

Broadmeadow/ Swords Estuary SPA

This site is of high importance for wintering waterfowl and supports a particularly good diversity of species. It has an internationally important population of Brent Goose (956) or 4.8% of the national total.

Ireland’s Eye cSAC Ireland’s Eye SPA

Irelands Eye is designated as a cSAC for the presence of coastal vegetated shingle, an Annex I habitat, which is present above a sand beach at Carrigeen Bay. Two Irish Red Data Book species are present, sea kale (Crambe maritima) and henbane (Hyoscyamus niger).

Ireland's Eye SPA has important populations of breeding seabirds. Gannet (Morus bassanus) (only colony on the east coast), Cormorant (Phalacrocorax carbo), Herring Gull (Larus argentatus), Great Black-backed Gull (Larus marinus), Kittiwake (Rissa tridactyla), Guillemot (Uria aalge) and Razorbill (Alca torda) populations are of national importance. When the Cormorant population is considered as part of a larger grouping with the colonies on nearby Lambay and St. Patrick’s Island, it is of international importance.

Lambay Island SAC Lambay Island SPA

Lambay Island has a good example of Vegetated Sea Cliffs of the Atlantic and Baltic Coasts (H1230), a habitat listed on Annex I of the EU Habitats Directive. The site supports the only colony of Atlantic Grey Seals (Halichoerus grypus) (Annex II species) on the east coast. Although a long established breeding site for this species, it remains relatively small (45-60 individuals) probably because of the restricted area suitable for breeding.

Lambay Island SPA is designated for its internationally important assemblage of breeding seabirds. The most numerous species is the Guillemot, with almost 52,000 individuals on the cliffs. Other species include Razorbills, Kittiwakes, Herring Gulls, Cormorants, Shags (Phalacrocorax aristotelis), Puffins (Fratercula arctica), and small numbers of Great and Lesser Black-backed Gulls (Larus fuscus) also breed. There is a small colony (<100 pairs) of the nocturnal Manx Shearwater (Puffinus puffinus) on the island and up to 20 pairs of Common Terns (Sterna hirundo) have bred in recent years. The cliffs also support a breeding pair of Peregrine Falcons (Falco peregrinus), a species listed on Annex I of the EU Birds Directive.



Site Reason for Selection Rogerstown Estuary cSAC

Rogerstown Estuary cSAC

Rogerstown Estuary cSAC has been designated as it is a good example of an estuarine system, with all typical habitats represented, including several listed on Annex I of the EU Habitats Directive.

The site is also designated as a SPA as it supports an internationally important population of Brent Goose and a further 14 species in numbers of national importance.

Howth Head cSAC Howth Head Coast SPA

Howth Head is a rocky headland situated on the northern side of Dublin Bay. The peninsula is composed of Cambrian slates and quartzites, joined to the mainland by a post glacial raised beach. Limestone occurs on the north-west side while glacial drift is deposited against the cliffs in places. Howth Head contains Vegetated Sea Cliffs of the Atlantic and Baltic Coasts (H1230) and dry heaths, two habitats listed on Annex I of the EU Habitats Directive.

This site is of high ornithological importance, with four seabird species having populations of national importance. The cliffs also support a breeding pair of Peregrine Falcons, a species listed on Annex I of the EU Birds Directive.

Figure 3.1 Location of SPAs and cSACs in relation to Portmarnock

3.1.2 Initial Screening of Designated Features

The proposed project is not located within any Natura 2000 sites, however there is still potential

for indirect impacts from the proposed works. As the designated sites cover a wide range of

features and area of coast, many of the key features may not occur in the immediate vicinity of

proposed works and certainly not within a potential impact zone. In order to initially screen the

proposed project key features of the cSAC and SPA sites identified above are presented in Table

3.3. Subsequent to this an initial screening of the feature has been undertaken in relation to its

potential to be affected by the proposed project and the need for further assessment. For ease of

reference, those which will be further assessed are highlighted in grey. Those which have been

screened out will not be assessed further, although for completeness, the initial screening details

have been included in the Summary Tables (Chapter 5).

Portmarnock and indicative cable route

Lambay Island

Ireland’s Eye

Rogerstown Estuary

Malahide Estuary Broadmeadow Swords Estuary

Baldoyle Bay

Howth Head

Por

tmar

nock

Nea

r S

hore

and

Cab

le L

andf

all S

urve

y

P

age

13

Env

ironm

enta

l Rev

iew

Rep

ort

Tita

n E

nviro

nmen

tal S

urve

ys L

td

Table 3.3 Summary and Initial Screening of Features of Natura 2000 sites

Annex 1 habitats that are primary reason for

site selection / Other Relevant Features

Initial review of potential to be affected by project

Further

assessment?

Baldoyle Bay cSAC

H131

0 -

Salic

orn

ia a

nd O

ther

Annu

als

Colo

nis

ing

M

ud a

nd S

an

d

There

will

be n

o d

irect

impact

on t

his

habitat.

The c

able

within

the inte

rtid

al are

a w

ill b

e b

uri

ed a

t lo

w w

ate

r th

ere

by g

en

era

ting m

inim

al suspen

ded s

olid

s.

No indir

ect

impact

anticip

ate

d.

No

H133

0 -

Atlantic s

alt m

eadow

s

T

here

will

be n

o d

irect

impact

on t

his

habitat.

The c

able

within

the inte

rtid

al are

a w

ill b

e b

uri

ed a

t lo

w w

ate

r th

ere

by g

en

era

ting m

inim

al suspen

ded s

olid

s.

No indir

ect

impact

anticip

ate

d.

No

H141

0 -

Mediterr

anean s

alt m

ea

dow

s

There

will

be n

o d

irect

impact

on t

his

habitat.

The c

able

within

the inte

rtid

al are

a w

ill b

e b

uri

ed a

t lo

w w

ate

r th

ere

by g

en

era

ting m

inim

al suspen

ded s

olid

s.

No indir

ect

impact

anticip

ate

d.

No

H114

0 -

Mudflats

and sandflats

not

covere

d by

seaw

ate

r at

low

tid

e

There

will

be

no

dir

ect

impact

on t

he

habitat.

Th

e c

able

within

the inte

rtid

al

are

a w

ill b

e b

uri

ed a

t lo

w w

ate

r and t

here

fore

gen

era

ting m

inim

al suspended s

olid

s.

No indir

ect im

pact

anticip

ate

d.

No

Baldoyle Bay SPA

Inte

rnationally

im

port

ant

po

pu

lations

of

Pale

-belli

ed B

rent

Geese (

Bra

nta

be

rnic

la).

T

here

will

be n

o d

irect

impact

on t

he S

PA

as t

he S

PA

is l

ocate

d b

ehin

d t

he p

enin

sula

in B

ald

oyle

Estu

ary

. T

he b

irds w

ill u

se t

he w

ide a

rea a

nd t

here

fore

furt

her

assessm

ent

of

pote

ntial

indir

ect

impa

ct

has b

ee

n

und

ert

aken.

Yes


H113

0 –

Estu

ari

es

There

will

be n

o d

irect

impact

on t

he e

stu

ary

habitat

whic

h i

s a

ppro

xim

ate

ly 1

.3km

to t

he n

ort

h.

The c

able

w

ithin

th

e in

tert

idal

are

a w

ill b

e buri

ed at

low

w

ate

r th

ere

by gen

era

ting m

inim

al

suspen

de

d solid

s.

No

indir

ect

impact anticip

ate

d.

No

Fin

e a

rea o

f ro

cky s

hore

south

-east

of

Mala

hid

e

and e

xte

ndin

g t

ow

ard

s P

ort

marn

ock.

There

will

be n

o d

irect

impact

on t

his

habitat

within

the c

SA

C.

Due t

o t

he p

roxim

ity o

f th

e r

ocky s

hore

are

a,

appro

xim

ate

ly 2

50m

to t

he n

ort

h,

an a

ssessm

ent

has b

een m

ad

e o

f pote

ntial in

dir

ect

impacts

.

Yes


Inte

rnationally

im

port

ant

po

pula

tion

of

Bre

nt

Geese.

There

will

be n

o d

irect

impact

on t

he S

PA

whic

h i

s l

ocate

d a

pp

roxim

ate

ly 1

.3km

to t

he n

ort

h.

As t

he b

irds

will

use t

he w

ider

are

a,

furt

her

assessm

ent

of

pote

ntial in

dir

ect im

pact

has b

een u

ndert

aken.

Yes

Ireland’s Eye cSAC

H122

0

- P

ere

nnia

l ve

geta

tio

n

of

Sto

ny

ba

nks

(Coasta

l vegeta

ted s

hin

gle

).

Pro

posed w

ork

s is d

ista

nt

and there

fore

no d

irect

or

indir

ect im

pact

on h

abitat

anticip

ate

d.

No

Irish R

ed D

ata

Books S

pecie

s -

Sea k

ale

(C

ram

be

m

ari

tim

e)

and H

enba

ne (

Hy

os

cy

am

us

nig

er)

. P

roposed w

ork

s is d

ista

nt

and there

fore

no d

irect

or

indir

ect im

pact

on h

abitat

anticip

ate

d.

No

Ireland’s Eye SPA

Irela

nd's

E

ye S

PA

has im

port

ant

pop

ula

tions of

bre

edin

g s

eabir

ds.

There

will

be n

o d

irect

impact

on t

he S

PA

whic

h i

s l

ocate

d a

ppro

xim

ate

ly 5

km

fro

m t

he s

ite.

The S

PA

is

locate

d o

ffshore

to

the

south

ea

st

and a

s t

he b

irds w

ill u

se t

he

wid

er

are

a,

furt

her

assessm

ent

of

pote

ntial

indir

ect

impact has b

een u

ndert

aken.

Yes

Lambay Island cSAC

H123

0 -

Ve

geta

ted S

ea C

liffs

of

the A

tlantic a

nd

B

altic

Coasts

P

roposed w

ork

s is d

ista

nt

and there

fore

no d

irect

or

indir

ect im

pact

on h

abitat

anticip

ate

d.

No

Atlantic G

rey S

eals

(A

nnex I

I specie

s (

1364)

There

will

be n

o d

irect

impact

on t

he c

SA

C,

but

seals

move a

rou

nd o

ffshore

. F

urt

her

assessm

ent

has b

een

und

ert

aken o

f th

is s

pecie

s a

nd m

ari

ne m

am

mals

as a

whole

.

Yes

Lambay Island SPA

SP

A is d

esig

nate

d f

or

its inte

rnationally

im

port

ant

for

its b

reedin

g s

eabir

ds.

There

will

be

no

dir

ect

impact

on t

he

SP

A w

hic

h i

s l

ocate

d o

ffshore

som

e 8

km

to

the

nort

heast

of

the

site.

Indir

ect

impacts

are

not

anticip

ate

d d

ue t

o t

he d

ista

nce.

No

Por

tmar

nock

Nea

r S

hore

and

Cab

le L

andf

all S

urve

y

P

age

14

Env

ironm

enta

l Rev

iew

Rep

ort

Tita

n E

nviro

nmen

tal S

urve

ys L

td

Annex 1 habitats that are primary reason for

site selection / Other Relevant Features

Initial review of potential to be affected by project

Further

assessment?


Rogers

tow

n E

stu

ary

cS

AC

has b

ee

n d

esig

nate

d

as it is

a g

ood e

xam

ple

of

an e

stu

ari

ne s

yste

m.

Pro

posed w

ork

s is d

ista

nt

and there

fore

no d

irect

or

indir

ect im

pact

on h

abitat

anticip

ate

d.

No

Rogerstown Estuary SPA

SP

A as it support

s an in

tern

ationally

im

port

ant

pop

ula

tion o

f B

rent

Geese.

There

will

be n

o d

irect

impact

on t

he S

PA

. T

he S

PA

is m

ore

dis

tant

to t

he p

roposed

cable

ro

ute

tha

n o

ther

sites.

If im

pacts

are

identified f

or

the c

loser

sites then f

urt

her

assessm

ent

will

be u

nd

ert

aken.

No

Howth Head cSAC

H123

0 -

Ve

geta

ted S

ea C

liffs

of

the A

tlantic a

nd

B

altic

Coasts

. P

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3.2 Intertidal Area A site visit was undertaken on the 24 – 25

th March 2011 to assess the cable landfall at

Portmarnock. The walkover survey looked at the upper beach area where the manhole is to be

located and the intertidal area which will be directly and potentially indirectly affected by the

proposed works.

Portmarnock beach, otherwise known as Velvet Strand, is a large sandy beach which extends

some 5km in a north south direction along a peninsula towards the port of Dublin. The beach is

located off the R106 coast road, with on-road parking and a public car park within immediate

walking distance. The main beach sits at a lower level than the coast road and is accessed via a

short concrete road leading to a slipway. The top of the slip is blocked to non-emergency vehicles

by a pair of metal gates.

To the north, the beach is bounded by a rocky shore which forms the southern extent of Malahide

Estuary cSAC. At this location the upper shore has been modified to include access steps to the

beach adjacent to the public conveniences, wide concrete steps for sunbathing and a viewing

platform (Photo 3.1). The remainder of the beach comprises mixed sand with occasional bedrock

outcrop on the upper shore. These distinct areas of beach habitat are discussed further below.

The proposed cable route would be to the south of the two existing cables which are buried

across the beach (Figure 3.2).

Photo 3.1 View of north Portmarnock Beach Figure 3.2 Plan View of Portmarnock Beach (N)

3.2.1 Upper Beach Area

The manhole chamber is to be located in the upper beach area adjacent to the main R106 coast

road in amenity grass beside a low stonewall. The grassed area extends from the slipway which

accesses the beach at the north end, along the top of the beach for a distance of approximately

380m. A tarmac footpath runs from the R106 along

the entire length of the grassed area. It is bisected

halfway along by another footpath which accesses a

public car park by the main road (Figure 3.3). The

grassed area ends in fenced off sand dunes habitat,

which forms part of a proposed SAC. The grassed

area is set at approximately 1.2m above the main

beach and there are a series of heavy timbers which

act as a sea defence (Photo 2.3). Plant species

noted growing along this interface include Sea Beet

(Beta vulgaris) and Scentless Mayweed

(Tripleurospermum maritimum).

. Photo 3.2 Upper Beach Manhole



3.2.2 North Beach Habitat

Along the northern boundary of the study area, the upper beach section (immediately below the

concrete bathing steps) is sandy with low lying rock outcrops. This is the southern most limit of

Malahide cSAC, and further around the coast to the north the beach becomes more consistent

rocky shore. In this southern limit of the rocky

shore the outcrops support Enteromorpha

intestinallis, barnacles, occasional areas of

Porphyra sp and a varying abundance of

juvenile fucoid species.

With progression down the intertidal zone

there is less abundance of seaweed and

increased coverage of barnacles, limpets

(Patellla vulgata) and juvenile common

mussels (Mytilus edulis). In some areas,

juvenile mussels have trapped clumps of sand

and shells in their byssal threads. Seaweeds

included Ceramium rubrum, Scytosiphon

lomentaria and Chondrus crispus. Photo 3.3 North Beach Area

Approximately 150m down the shore the rocky

area is bisected by a slightly raised sandy area

which continues south along the beach.

Arenicola (Lug worm) casts and Razor Shell

holes were evident in the sand. Below the

sandy section further low lying rock outcrops

with small sandy pools occur. Species present

included Common Periwinkle (Litorina litorea),

Dog Whelk (Nucellus lapillus), Limpet (P.

vulgata) and mixed patches of seed and adult

mussels. Seaweed noted included mature

Fucus serratus, and a dense covering of a fine

filamentous red aglae within and around the

edges of small sandy rock pools.

Photo 3.4 Fine filamentous algae

Beyond the area of rock outcrop the beach is sandy with evidence of polychaete worms such as

the Lugworm (Arenicola marina) and Sand Mason (Lanice conchilega) and the bivalve Razor

Shell (Ensis sp). Washed up on the shore were cockle shells, Kelp (Laminaria saccharina) and

the Heart Urchin, Sea Potato (Echinocardium cordatum).

3.2.3 Main Beach Habitat

The main beach and the route of the proposed cable comprised fine to medium sand. At the top

of the beach occasional small rock outcrops occur and within the adjacent sand there were

frequent small pebbles and broken shells. Below this, the beach level dips and then rises slightly

to form one of two low lying sand areas which run in

a north-south direction. The raised sand areas

support deposits of broken shells with occasional

small pebbles. Species were sparse on the rocks of

the upper beach with only juvenile Enteromorpha

intestinallis and Cladophora being noted at the time

of survey. The sandy area running down to the low

tide mark had a good distribution of worms such as

Arenicola sp, Lanice conchilega, the Ragworm

(Hediste diversicolor) and Pectinaria sp. There was

also evidence of Razor Shells (Ensis spp) in the

sand and other species including Brittle Stars

(Ophiuroidea) and dead Sea Potatoes, Crabs and

Kelp. Photo 3.5 Brittle Star



There was a diverse range of broken shells on the slightly

raised sand areas including Razor Shell (Ensis spp), a range of

cockle species (family Cardiidae), Tellinidae species and

Mytilus. The high numbers of broken shells observed is likely to

be associated with the offshore commercial fishing activity (see

Section 3.5).

Overall the species found on Portmarnock beach were as would

be expected for a sandy beach with rocky headland. The beach

as a whole is not protected by site designation and none of the

species found were considered of conservation importance. The

rocky shore area to the north of the sands falls within Malahide

cSAC. Based on Table 1.1, the beach manhole has been

assessed as Negligible conservation value; the sandy intertidal

area is assessed as (District) Low Conservation value and the

rocky shore area at northern extreme has been assessed as

High Conservation value.

Photo 3.6 Broken shells on raised sand areas

3.3 Offshore Benthic Ecology Information on the broad scale benthic ecology in the Irish Sea can be found through the

interactive web mapping tool EUSeaMap on the Joint Nature Conservation Committee (JNCC)

web site. Figure 3.4 below is an extract from the seabed map for the area off Portmarnock. The

map shows the approximate cable route and the habitat types which are associated with the

substrate present.

Figure 3.4 Extract of Seabed Habitats off Portmarnock from EUSeaMap

It is proposed to bury the cable at a depth of approximately 1m to give protection (from activities

such as trawling). As such the cable route selected has been based upon the presence of

appropriate sediment. From Figure 3.4 it can be seen that the proposed cable route emerges

from Portmarnock beach across the infralittoral Zone (beige). On the EUSeaMap the specific

habitat is unidentified, but based on the site visit is has been identified as mixed sediments. Key

features of this habitat are the presence of shallow mixed (heterogeneous) sediments in fully

marine or near fully marine conditions, supporting various animal-dominated communities, with

relatively low proportions of seaweeds. This habitat can range from well mixed muddy gravelly

sands to very poorly sorted mosaics of shell, cobbles and pebbles embedded in mud, sand or

gravel. Due to the quite variable nature of the sediment type, a widely variable array of

communities may be found, including those dominated by bivalves, polychaetes and file shells.

The proposed cable route heads in a north east direction passing through infralittoral fine sand

(A5.23) and then deep circalittoral mud (A5.37). Habitat A5.23 is defined as clean sands which

occur in shallow water, either on the open coast or in tide-swept channels of marine inlets. The



habitat typically lacks a significant seaweed component and is characterised by robust fauna,

particularly amphipods (Bathyporeia) and robust polychaetes including Nephtys cirrosa and

Lanice conchilega.

Habitat A5.37 is a mud and cohesive sandy mud in the offshore circalittoral zone, typically below

50-70m. A variety of faunal communities may develop, depending upon the level of silt/clay and

organic matter in the sediment. Communities are typically dominated by polychaetes but often

with high numbers of bivalves such as Thyasira spp., echinoderms and foraminifera.

The route then heads in a south easterly direction towards Holy Island passing into habitat A5.27.

This is an offshore (deep) circalittoral habitat with fine sands or non-cohesive muddy sands. Very

little data is available on these habitats however they are likely to be more stable than their

shallower counterparts and characterised by a diverse range of polychaetes, amphipods, bivalves

and echinoderms.

Overall the cable route follows a sandy corridor characterised by common species such as

polychaete worms, bivalves, crustaceans and echinoderms. The offshore benthic ecology has

been assessed as of Local/Negligible value based on Table 1.1.

3.4 Marine Mammals There are a number of cetaceans (whales, dolphins and porpoise) which can be seen off the

coast of Ireland. All the species of cetaceans are given protection under the Wildlife and

Countryside Act 1981 and the Wildlife (Northern Ireland) Order 1985 and they are also listed on

Annex IV (Animal and Plant Species of Community Interest in Need of Strict Protection) of the EC

Habitats Directive.

Information on the species observed and their current status can be found in Status of EU

Protected Habitats and Species in Ireland (2008). This report identifies all the species recorded

throughout Ireland and broadly shows where they have been recorded. Table 3.4 below presents

information on cetaceans recorded in the general area offshore of Portmarnock and their current

status. Table 3.4 Summary of Marine Mammals in Irish Sea

Marine Mammal Atlantic Grey Seal (Halichoerus grypus) is found widely on Irish coastlines in the breeding season but its range throughout the rest of the year is largely unknown. Local populations in Ireland, form part of a larger population inhabiting the north-east Atlantic as in western Europe. Lambay Island supports the only colony of Grey Seals on the east coast of Ireland.

Range – unknown Population – good Habitat – good Future Prospects - good

The Common (Harbour) Seal (Phoca vitulina) - found widely on Irish

coastlines mainly using inter-tidal rocky shores, sand and mud bars within sheltered bays, coves and estuaries. Most abundant on the west coast from Donegal to West Cork. The main threats are continued by-catch in fishing gear, occasional illegal culling, competition for prey resources with fisheries and disturbance at key breeding and moulting haul-out sites.

Range – unknown Population – good Habitat – good Future Prospects - good

Humped Back Whales (Megaptera novaeangliae) have been observed off all Irish coasts, mainly in late summer, autumn and winter. The western seaboard of Ireland is known to be an important migratory corridor for large baleen whales including Blue, Fin and Humpback Whales.

Range – unknown Population – unknown Habitat – unknown Future Prospects - unknown

Bottlenose Dolphin (Tursiops truncates) can be seen inshore from all Irish

coasts, though mainly along the west and south coast. The main threats to this species are similar to those for other cetaceans. This includes by-catch in fishing gear, pollution of the marine environment and habitat degradation.

Range – good Population – unknown Habitat – good Future Prospects - good

Common Dolphin (Delphinus delphis) are found in all Irish waters and mainly off the west, south-west and south coasts of Ireland. They are the most frequently sighted cetacean species and the number of Common Dolphins seen increases noticeably during autumn and winter along the south coast.


Harbour Porpoise (Phocoena phocoena) are widespread and abundant around the entire Irish coast, feeding mainly on small fish caught near the seabed. They are very small and shy of boats, making them difficult to spot.

Range – good Population – Good Habitat – good Future Prospects - good



Killer Whale (Orcinus orca) have been seen all around the coast of Ireland. They are generally seen close to land, either singly or in small groups. They have been recorded off the continental shelf and over offshore banks, as well as entering harbours and estuaries on a number of occasions. Inshore sightings of killer whales tend to increase during late summer and autumn.


Risso’s Dolphin (Grampus griseus) have been recorded in Irish waters at all times of the year. They are regularly seen off the south and west coasts both inshore and out to sea, usually within the extent of the continental shelf. They also occur regularly in the Irish Sea.


White Sided Dolphin (Lagenorhynchus acutus) is not very common in Irish

waters, mainly recorded in spring and summer off the north and north-west coasts of Ireland. Sightings have also been made offshore in the Irish Channel.


Striped Dolphins (Stenella coeruleeoalba) are rarely seen in Irish waters, but may be under recorded due to their superficial resemblance to Common Dolphins. They are one of the most frequently stranded dolphin species in Ireland, with strandings mainly occurring on the north and west coasts.


The Minke Whale (Balaenoptera acutorostrata) is the most frequently recorded baleen whale in Irish waters. It occurs along the entire Irish coastline though mainly off the south and west coasts, typically between May and October. An abundance estimate around 2007 for Irish coastal waters is 2,222 individuals.


Fin Whales (Balaenoptera physalus) are usually seen alone or in loosely

associated groups of up to 8 individuals, although over 20 have been seen together off the south coast of Ireland in summer. Acoustic detections have estimated that between 300 - 500 Fin Whales migrate through Irish waters annually.


As discussed previously the Atlantic Grey Seal at Lambay Island is an Annex II species, and in

addition to these there is the potential for other marine mammals to occur in the sea off

Portmarnock. Marine mammals have therefore been identified as Very High/International value,

based on Table 1.1.

3.5 Fish, Commercial Fisheries and Recreational Fishing Knowledge of the offshore fish and shellfish species in an area can be gained through looking at

commercial and recreational fishing data. Information on commercial fisheries for around

Portmarnock has been extracted from a specialist fisheries report prepared for the Cable Route

Desk Study (Appendix E, NRC, 2009). Information on nursery and spawning grounds have been

obtained from the Department of Energy and Climate Change, UK Offshore Energy Strategic

Environmental Assessment, Future Leasing for Offshore Wind Farms and Licensing for Offshore

Oil & Gas and Gas Storage report produced in January 2009. Data on recreational fisheries has

been obtained from the internet.

3.5.1 Commercial Fisheries

Overview The Irish Sea as a whole is extensively fished by vessels of many nationalities, using a variety of

methods such as potting, scallop dredging, beam trawling and otter trawling. However, the

commercial fishing conducted within 12nm of shore is usually undertaken by smaller (<15m) local

fishing boats from the UK.

There are a wide variety of inshore fisheries around the margins of the Irish Sea. The inshore

(<6nm) waters are managed by the UK in agreement with Irish Government. Some of these

fisheries operate under annual total allowable catches (TACs) and are monitored for catch and

effort, but many are not actively managed and are open access with no statistical reporting of

effort or catch. Offshore fisheries are managed by ICES (the Irish Sea is ICES sub-area VIIa for

management purposes) under international agreements between a number of European

countries that allow access to waters 6nm offshore. These fisheries are managed under overall

and individual annual quotas. Overall fishing effort and catch in the region has declined

moderately from historical levels, even though larger modern fishing vessels have, for the most

part, replaced older less powerful vessels.



Inshore waters, within 12nm of the coast, are often the most productive areas for fish and

shellfish. Many species of fish and shellfish are limited in their distribution to the shallow

productive waters close to the coast. These areas can also be important spawning and nursery

grounds for species that spend most of their life cycle in deeper waters offshore. For these

reasons it is the coastal waters which are the most sensitive to disturbance. Further discussion of

nursery and spawning areas can be found in Section 3.5.2. Fishing Practices

Scallop dredging (including the fisheries for King Scallop (Pecten maximus) and Queen Scallop

(Aequipecten opercularis)) is mainly centred around the Isle of Man and south of the proposed

cable route off the east coast of Ireland (Figure 3.5). Vessel monitoring system (VMS) data shows

some scallop dredging taking place off the north east coast of Lambay Island, and within 6nm of

the shoreline further to the north. A known scallop bed is located mid-way between Dublin and

Anglesey just north of the cable route, with a portion of the bed intersecting the proposed cable.

Recent VMS data does not show significant dredging in this area, but the amount of current and

future dredging effort likely to occur in this bed is unknown.

Historical whelk pot fishing grounds are present along the coast near Dublin, but to the south of

the proposed cable route (Figure 3.5). VMS data (Appendix E, Cable route Report) shows Whelk

pot fishing activity predominantly on the Welsh side of the Irish Sea beyond 12nm. The exact

number of vessels involved in the whelk pot fishery is unknown but there are probably less than

20 boats involved off Dublin.

Crab pot fishing for velvet crab occurs off the coast of Ireland along the proposed cable landing

near Dublin (Figure 3.5). Fishing effort occurs within 6 nm (11 km of shore). The exact number of

vessels involved in the crab pot fishery is unknown but there are probably less than 30 boats

involved overall.

Figure 3.5 Scallop, crab, whelk fishing grounds chart

Lobster pot fishing occurs along the coast near Dublin, within 6nm. The exact number of vessels

involved in the lobster pot fishery off the landing is unknown but there are probably less than 30

boats involved off Dublin.

Bottom Longline is used by smaller (<10m) inshore fishing vessels. Bottom longline sections are

typically 100m or more in length, and 5 to 10 sections may be fished in a set. Most inshore

longline rigs are about 500m in length with 500 hooks. VMS data records of bottom longline from

2007 and 2008 shows the majority of effort in the northern Irish Sea, with minor effort through the

central portion of the Irish Sea (Figure 3.6).



Figure 3.6 Bottom Longline VMS Data

A number of demersal and pelagic species support commercial fisheries off the UK and Ireland in

the Irish Sea. Plaice and Sole are an important demersal species for otter trawl, beam and

inshore gillnet fisheries and are widely distributed throughout the area at depths of 80m or less.

These species are fished for particularly in the winter months between October and April. Dover

Sole (commonly caught at depths of 40m or more) is another important target species of beam

and otter trawl fisheries and taken as bycatch in scallop/mussel dredges in the area. It is found

throughout the Irish and Celtic seas with major fishing grounds found in the northern Irish Sea

and Liverpool Bay. Atlantic cod are found and actively fished throughout the Irish Sea and are

targeted by otter trawl, beam trawl, longline, gillnet and jig fisheries, although recent overfishing

has resulted in limited cod fishing and seasonal closure areas to protect spawning fish and

drifting eggs.

Beam trawling effort is widespread throughout the Irish Sea (Figure 3.7). Fishing effort is

concentrated off Cumbrian, Lancashire, and north Wales during the spring. High fishing effort

occurs west of Liverpool and in Morecambe Bay.

Figure 3.7 VMS data for Beam Trawl 2007 – 2008



The VMS data indicates that otter trawling is widespread throughout the Irish Sea but greater north of the Llyn Peninsula (Figure 3.8). There is seasonal concentration of fishing effort between April and December on the Nephrops grounds off the west coast of the Isle of Man to the northeast Irish coast. VMS otter trawl data reflects otter trawl effort in concordance with the historical fishing grounds (Figure 3.8 and 3.9).

Figure 3.8 VMS data for Otter Trawl 2008

Figure 3.9 Historic Nephrops Trawl Grounds

On average 15,000 to 20,000 hours of bottom trawling for Nephrops occurs each year in the

eastern Irish Sea off the Isle of Man and 200,000 hours in the western Irish Sea between the Isle

of Man and the eastern coast of Ireland. ICES reports up to 25% of the seabed in some northern

Irish Sea statistical reporting blocks is covered each year by otter trawling. A seasonal closure of

most mobile bottom contact fishing gear in a cod spawning and egg drift area off northeast coast

of Ireland occurs each year from mid-February through April.

There is also a small local fishery in the shallow water for razor shells and cockles. Suction

dredges are used in shallow inshore waters to catch cockles and in a few areas, razor shells.

They work on the principle of fluidising the surface sediments that are guided by a blade to a

suction head where the sand and animals are pumped to the surface for grid sorting. Cockle



dredges generally remove the top 10cm of sediment; razor shells live much deeper and

specialised dredges have been developed which dig down 60cm or more.

There are reported to be up to 6 vessels (9 to 10m long)

which use vacuums to suck up razor shells in 5m or less

of water. Newspaper articles from around 2006 indicate

that there was conflict surrounding the razor fishery and

occasional unlicensed vessels. Councillors made calls to

have fishing banned off Velvet Strand as it was causing

serious environmental damage to the beach, with the

unwanted species caught up in the dredging process

being washed up on the beach. During the site visit in

March 2011 six boats were observed offshore of the

Velvet Strand between Lambay Island and Irelands Eye.

Two were actively fishing and four were at anchor. Photo 3.7 Fishing off Velvet Strand

3.5.2 Spawning Grounds and Nurseries

Spawning and nursery areas are important, as large groups of fish will gather to co-ordinate

spawning at certain times of the year. In terms of nurseries, juvenile fish are vulnerable to

predators and harsh conditions in the open water. As such it is usual for juvenile fish to stay in

sheltered nursery grounds which provide an abundance of food. At nursery and spawning

grounds, fish aggregate in large numbers and so are particularly vulnerable to disturbance.

The Energy and Department of Climate Change Offshore SEA (2009) baseline appendices

identifies the spawning and nursery grounds for 13 key commercial fish species including

Nephrops (a shellfish) around the UK and Irish coast. The areas indicated are broad in their

overview and are identified as areas where spawning may occur. Table 3.5 below summaries

the species which are may spawn or have nurseries offshore of Portmarnock. The extent of the

overall spawning/nursery ground is also given. Table3.5 Summary of Fish Spawning and Nursery Grounds off Portmarnock Fish Species Spawning - Extent of Grounds Spawning season Nursery

Sprat The entire Irish Sea and around the UK coastal waters as a whole.

May and August N/A

Cod Coastal area from Newcastle in north to Dublin

January to April Just south of Belfast to Wicklow in South.

Plaice Coastal area from Newcastle in north to Dublin.

January to March Coastal area from Newcastle in north to Dublin.

Sole Coastal area from approx. Dundalk to Dublin.

March to May N/A

Nephrops From northern Scotland to approx 20 miles south of Dublin.

Eggs hatch spring or summer

From northern Scotland to approx 20 miles south of Dublin.

Lemon Sole From Newcastle in north to around southern tip Ireland.

April to September From Newcastle in north to around southern tip Ireland.

Whiting Newcastle in north to Dublin. February to June Newcastle in north to Dublin.

Haddock N/A February to May Belfast to approx 20 miles south of Dublin.

Herring N/A Varied depending on species.

Newcastle in north to just north of Dublin.

As can be seen the waters off the east coast of Ireland are important in terms of fish spawning

grounds and nurseries. There are a number of key fish species which have the proposed landfall

point as the southern extent of their grounds.



3.5.3 Recreational Fisheries

Although there seems to be a diverse range of commercial fish species offshore, Velvet Strand

itself does not appear to be particularly noted for recreational fishing. This may in part be due to

the fact that it is an extensive sandy beach with limited rock outcrop only at its northern extent.

Fish species that are reported to be caught are the occasional bass and flounder from the rocks

to the north of the beach around the Martello Tower. Along the Strand itself distance casting will

produce Dogfish and occasional Codling and Whiting in the autumn.

Further around the coast boats can be chartered from Malahide to fish offshore. Here Cod, Ray,

Whiting, Tope, Spurdog, Pollack, Mackerel, Coalfish, Dabs and Plaice can be caught. Malahide is

also reported to be a prime bait gathering location and has extensive lugworm beds, whilst

ragworm, mussel, clam and cockles can also be gathered locally.

3.5.4 Fish Overview

The information gathered on commercial fisheries, recreational fishing and nurseries show that

the main focus of interest is commercial fisheries with a number of commercial fish having

spawning and nursery grounds offshore. The main fishing activity for commercial species appears

to be further offshore to the north or around the Isle of Mann. Notwithstanding this there is an

active local fishery for Razor shells and Cockles.

In terms of recreational fishing this appears to be limited close to the shore, and fishing further

offshore yield a better range of species.

Overall the fish and fisheries off Portmarnock have been identified as Regional/County value

based on Table 1.1.

3.6 Landscape and Tourism Fingal County Council Development Plan 2005 - 2011 was reviewed in terms of landscape and protected areas in the vicinity of the cable landfall point. The relevant information extracted from their interactive map is shown on Figure 3.10 below.

Figure 3.10 Landscape Character and Protect Areas

The Fingal Development Plan 2005 – 2011 identifies the area around the cable landfall point as located with a “Coastal” Landscape Character Area. Baldoyle Estuary, located behind Velvet Strand Peninsula, is identified as “Estuary”. The main objective of both Character Areas is the protection and enhancement of high amenity areas. As can be seen from Figure 3.10, the Coastal Landscape Character unit extends from Portmarnock town itself along the sandy



peninsula. As such the landscape views will vary from coastal town to a more remote and secluded aspect. The Development Plan is being updated with the 2011-2017 Plan, and this Draft Plan identifies that the area is at risk from coastal flooding.

In terms of tourism, Dublin is about the sixth most popular city to visit and in 2007 it had almost

4.5 million overseas tourists. Portmarnock, is a dormitory town to Dublin, and with its extensive

beach and aviation history, it is also a popular destination for both overseas and more local

people to visit. Portmarnock village itself comprises a single main street, with small local shops,

one of the two local Roman Catholic churches and other facilities such as the Portmarnock Golf

Club and Velvet Strand beach.

Velvet Strand is designated under the EC Bathing Water Directive and is sampled at fortnightly

intervals during the bathing season (mid May to September). Although the beach usually

achieves the mandatory standards of the Directive, it has a mixed history in terms of water

quality. The beach achieved the more stringent Blue Flag award in 1991 and since then the

water quality deteriorated. In 2010, after two previous successive years of good water quality, the

beach regained the coveted Blue Flag Award. Access to the beach is from the north end where

there is plenty of road side parking, a large public car park and a local bus route. The southern

section of Velvet Strand Peninsula is taken up by Portmarnock Golf course.

There is a wide range of activities which take place at the beach including:

• Sun bathing and swimming

• Power walking

• Running

• Beach Volleyball Tournaments

• Kite surfing

• Wind surfing

• Dog walkers (kept on leash in Reserved

Bathing Area June to August).

• Horses/Horse and trap (not permitted

June to August; weekend and public

holidays from 11am to 8pm).

Photo 3.8 Horse Exercising on Beach

In terms of landscape in the immediate vicinity of the proposed works, this is identified as

County/Low value and tourism in the area has been identified as of Regional/Medium value.



4 Assessment of Potential Impacts and Mitigation

4.1 Construction Impacts and Mitigation The following sections assess the potential effects of the construction of the beach manhole and

the installation of the cable in the intertidal and subtidal area to 12nm. The results of the initial

screening and the assessment are summarised in Tables within Chapter 5.

4.1.1 Designated Sites

As discussed in Section 3.1 there are a number of internationally designated sites near to the

cable landfall location and although there will be no direct impact on any of the site features, there

is potential for indirect impacts. Preliminary screening of the various site features in Table 3.3

identified that potential indirect impacts could occur on the birds of the closest SPAs, namely

Baldoyle Bay, Broadmeadow/Swords Estuary, Irelands Eye and Lambay Island. In terms of the

cSACs, the southerly limit of the rocky shore of Malahide headland is located about 250m from

the cable route. Although not an Annex I habitat, the rocky shore around the Malahide headland

is noted for its ecology. This is discussed further within Section 4.1.3. Intertidal Area. Finally, as

Atlantic Grey Seal, an Annex II species, breed on Lambay Island and will frequent the offshore

area, there is potential for indirect impacts.

Birds of SPA

The various SPAs around Portmarnock/Velvet Strand have been designated for internationally

important populations of Brent Geese or for breeding sea birds. Although the construction of the

manhole and cable laying will not directly affect the SPA or its habitat, the birds will visit the wider

area and therefore there may be potential for disturbance during construction works.

Notwithstanding this the Portmarnock/ Velvet Strand area as a whole is popular for visitors and

therefore the birds will be acclimatised to intermitted disturbance in terms of traffic noise, people,

horses and dogs. In addition to this the proposed location of the cable route and manhole is at the

north end of the beach where the main public access and road/parking is located. As such the

background levels of disturbance from visitors will be greater in this area.

The proposed works will comprise the construction of a beach manhole in amenity grass and the

laying and burial of a cable in the sandy intertidal area. The works at the landing site as a whole

will take approximately 5 days in total. With the short duration of work and the existing

background disturbance levels in the area, the impact on the birds from the SPAs visiting the area

is assessed to be Neutral (within the tolerance level of the birds) and therefore No Impact is

anticipated.

In terms of potential effects from the cable laying vessel on the breeding seabird’s food source,

namely fish, the offshore cable laying process will also be short in duration 16 - 20 days for the

entire cable route. The cable laying method will result in some localised disturbance to the

seabed and surrounding area, but this will be minimal compared to current fishing practices off

the beach. As such the potential indirect impacts are assessed to be Neutral and therefore No

Impact overall is anticipated.

Atlantic Grey Seal

As identified in Table 3.2, Lambay Island supports the only colony of Atlantic Grey Seals

(Halichoerus grypus) (Annex II species) on the east coast of Ireland. The proposed intertidal

works is approximately 8km distant from the island and as such there will be no direct impact on

the breeding seal colony.

In terms of indirect effects, all marine mammal species are afforded strict protection from

interference and deliberate harm by the European Communities (Natural Habitats) Regulations

1997 and the Wildlife (Amendment) Act 1976 & 2000. For offshore work, strict rules have to be

observed when approaching marine mammals. The potential indirect effects of the proposed

offshore cable laying will be discussed in Section 4.1.5, Marine Mammals.



4.1.2 Upper Beach

The proposed works for the beach manhole and laying the cable to the beach interface will be in

the amenity grassed area of the upper beach, which is of low conservation value. During

construction there will be a short (2-3 days) localised impact on the habitat, but once works are

completed the area will be reinstated. Good construction practice will be employed in particular in

terms of storage and handling of fuels and temporary storage of materials. Care will be taken to

minimise damage to the surrounding grassed area and if any grassed areas are damaged re-

seeding will be undertaken on completion.

The transition from the amenity grassed area to the top of the sandy beach requires a drop in

height of about 1.2m, and crossing of vertical timbers which act as the upper beach coastal

protection (Photo 2.3). This section of cable could be laid by open cut, however if conditions

permit the option of a trenchless technology such as moling would be considered. Whichever

technique is used, discussions would be held with the Local Council in advance of the work, and

the timbers would be reinstated to their existing condition. Overall, due to the short duration of

work and the Local/Low conservation value of the habitat the significance is assessed as No

Impact based on Table 1.3.

4.1.3 Intertidal Area

The proposed works are not within any cSAC, and therefore there will be no direct impact on the

habitat. The rocky shore area which is approximately 250m to the north of the cable landfall is

within Malahide cSAC and as such potential indirect impacts have been assessed.

The cable on the intertidal section of Portmarnock/Velvet Strand beach will be laid on the shore

and buried at low water. The final route to be chosen will try and achieve a sand depth as close to

2m as possible. On the lower section of beach this will be easily achievable. On the upper most

section of the beach, careful routing will be required to avoid shallow bedrock. Should constraints

be put upon the route due to the existing buried cables, and a minimal depth of sand is not

achievable, some bedrock beneath the sand may require rock breaking. If required, the method to

undertake this work would be discussed and agreed in advance with the Council such that local

impacts are minimised.

The trench area affected by the cable will be approximately 0.5m wide down the length of the

intertidal area to low water springs, and as such there will be a direct localised impact on the

ecology in this area. However, the sand excavated will be backfilled and therefore any marine

fauna such as Ragworms, Lugworms and Razor Shells will be able to re-colonise the area. Sandy

habitats, due to the more mobile nature of sediment, tend to have species which are more robust

and able to recover more rapidly from temporary impacts. Overall it is assessed that the direct

impacts from the cable laying will be Minor as they will be short term, temporary and localised.

As such the impact is assessed to be Insignificant.

In terms of indirect effects, as the trench will be excavated, the cable laid and backfilled at low

water, the potential impact from suspended solids on the surrounding area will be significantly

reduced. With the distance of the rocky shore of the cSAC from the proposed works (+250m), and

the natural background levels of suspended solids as a result of wave action and offshore fishing

activities, the indirect effect on the rocky area is assessed to be within the natural tolerance of the

habitat and therefore No Impact is anticipated.

4.1.4 Offshore Benthic Ecology

The offshore cable route will follow the sandy substrate and where possible be buried to a depth

of 1m. The cable laying will be undertaken using specialist equipment which will plough the cable

into the ground in one movement. In this way the area directly affected is minimised, as there is

no need to excavate an underwater free standing trench. There will be a Minor localised impact

on the marine ecology along the route, but many of the species will in fact survive being turned in

the sediment and should just re-establish themselves in the sediment. The overall direct impact

on local benthos is assessed to be Insignificant.



In terms of suspended sediments, there will be a localised increase in sediments as the ploughing

and cable laying takes place. The sediments will be carried varying distances depending on their

size and the tidal state and they will eventually settle on the seabed. In terms of indirect impact

this is assessed to be of Minor significance due to the small amount of sediments that are

anticipated to be disturbed. Overall the cable laying activity should be significantly less disruptive

in terms of direct and indirect impacts when compared to cockle and razor shell fishing practices.

The overall indirect impact on local benthos is assessed to be Insignificant.

4.1.5 Marine Mammals

In the case of marine mammals there is potential for direct or indirect impact from the offshore

cable laying work. The potential impacts can be broadly classified as increased disturbance from

marine vessel during cable laying through:

• Noise

• Visual disturbance, and

• Interaction with vessels/cable.

In terms of increased noise/ visual disturbance during the cable laying phase, the actual duration

of cable laying will be short-term, taking approximately 16 to 20 days along the entire route to

Ireland. The presence of the cable laying vessel should be no more disturbing than other fishing

vessels which operate off the coast.

With respect to potential interaction with the cable laying gear, the cable laying vessels will be

slow moving with minimal underwater moving parts. The activity would be akin to laying lobster

pots and would be assessed as a lesser risk to marine mammals compared with, for instance,

trawling. As such the potential impact to marine mammals during cable installation is assessed to

be Neutral and therefore there should be No Impact overall.

Notwithstanding the above, a member of the ships staff shall be a trained marine mammal

observer (MMO) and they will monitor for marine mammals. In addition to this the vessel shall be

fully compliant with international safety standards as specified by the SOLAS convention and all

relevant local and national regulations.

4.1.6 Fish, Commercial Fisheries and Recreational Fishing

As discussed above the laying of the offshore cable is short in duration and will take

approximately 16- 20 days in total, with the work within 12nm taking about 3-4 days.

In terms of direct impact to fish, the vessel will be slow moving and therefore fish will easily be

able to move away from the area. Fish will also be able to avoid the temporary localised increase

in suspended sediments which will occur during cable laying. Once the cable laying vessel has

passed over an area the fish will be able to move back. In reality the ploughing process will turn

over the sediment and may in fact bring some worm species to the surface which will be an easy

food source for the fish. The magnitude of potential impact on fish during cable laying is assessed

as Neutral giving an overall assessment of No Impact.

In terms of fish spawning grounds and nurseries, Section 3.5.2 confirmed that the waters off the

east coast of Ireland are important in terms of fish spawning grounds and nurseries. A number of

these key fish species have the proposed landfall point as the southern extent of their grounds.

The proposed cable laying works will only affect a narrow area of seabed and the works will be

short in duration. Although there may be direct and indirect impacts to spawning or juvenile fish,

the impact from the cable laying vessel will be much less than that experienced from current

fishing practices in the area. The magnitude of potential impact on fish spawning and nursery

ground during cable laying is therefore assessed as Neutral giving an overall assessment of No

Impact.



With respect to commercial fishing, as identified in Section 3.5.1 the majority of trawling occurs

further north along the coast or offshore. There are however, a number of vessels which fish for

Cockles and Razor Shells immediately offshore of the beach.

During installation the cable laying vessel will not be able to move off its given route and therefore

good communication will be required in advance to ensure that there is no interaction between

fishing vessels and the cable vessel. The works will be confined to a narrow corridor and with an

appropriate safety distance suction dredging for shellfish could be able to continue. With the short

duration of work (3-4 days), the magnitude of potential impact on commercial fishing during cable

laying is assessed as Minor to Neutral, giving an overall assessment of Minor Adverse to

Insignificant Impact.

With respect to recreational fishing, the main areas appear to be offshore or from rocky beaches.

A notice to mariners will be issued so that any vessels will be aware of the proposed short

duration works. As such the magnitude of impact on recreation fishing is assessed Neutral giving

No Impact overall.

4.1.7 Landscape and Tourism

As discussed in Section 3.6 Portmarnock beach/Velvet Strand is located in a Coastal Landscape

Character area and is a popular spot for local people as well as tourists. The proposed manhole

works will take about 2-3 days with the cable laying across the beach being an additional 2 days.

The beach manhole area of works will be fenced for health and safety reasons and the siting of

the compound will be positioned to avoid the footpaths and minimise disturbance to users of the

area. Care will be taken to minimise damage to the surrounding grassed area. There will be no

“landscaping works” associated with the manhole chamber, however, if any grassed areas are

damaged, re-seeding will be undertaken on completion.

Access to the working area on the beach will also need to be restricted when the cable is being

laid and buried and then taken onto the offshore vessel. This is only like to be for a short period

(approximately 2 days). Notwithstanding this in order to minimise disruption and disturbance to

local users and visitors during construction it would be proposed to undertaken the works outside

of the bathing season (mid May to September) and school holiday period. If possible weekends

would also be avoided for the beach cable laying, but these works will be influenced by the timing

of the offshore works and weather. Notwithstanding the above discussions would be held in

advance with the Local Councils concerning the onshore works.

If the works are time to be outside the main tourist season and avoid holidays, the short-term

temporary impact on landscape and tourism during the construction phase is assessed to be

Minor to Neutral which based on Table 1.3 would result in Minor Adverse Impact to No

Impact.

4.2 Operation Impacts and Mitigation Once operational the proposed cable has a theoretical design life of 25-40 years. There will be no

surface structure associated with the manhole. The intertidal cable will be buried to a depth of

approximately 2m and offshore around 1m if possible. Under normal circumstances, the cable will

operate without any sub-sea works or routine maintenance. Should the cable be damaged or

develop a physical fault, marine repair work would be required. Generally this would require a

cable ship to grapnel and pull onboard the cable to allow cutting and the insertion of a new cable

section and jointing operations. This would be undertaken on board the vessel over a 1-3 day

period.

In terms of potential operational impacts under normal operating conditions, as the cable is buried

there should be no direct effect to the any of the species or habitats discussed previously, nor to

commercial or recreational fisheries, marine mammals, landscape or tourism aspects of the area. Should maintenance be required on the cable, this would be short in duration and should result

lesser impact than that previously identified for the installation phase. However, depending on the



location of the maintenance work, appropriate discussion would be undertaken with consultees

and any mitigation requirements would be identified.

With respect to indirect effects, potential Electro-Magnetic Field (EMF) has been considered.

COWRIE (July 2005) (Collaborative Offshore Wind Energy Research in to the Environment)

commissioned a report to review current available information on the potential effects of sub-sea

power cables on sensitive marine organisms. Their findings concluded that most modern long

distance telecommunication cables consist of optical fibres rather than wires. Such cables may

require a power supply to signal amplifiers (repeaters) which boost the signal at various points

along their length. These would have the potential to generate some EMF.

Some recent telecommunication cables use optical amplification without the need for the

electrical regenerator in the repeater. This system with short length fibre optic cables and without

repeaters would have no associated electric or magnetic fields. The Portmarnock - Porth Dafarch

cable will be repeater-less and as such no EMF should be associated with it. There will therefore

be No Impact on the marine mammals or sensitive fish species from the cable.

4.3 Decommissioning Impacts and Mitigation Once beyond its operating lifespan, the inert nature of the cable means that leaving it in place will

have the least environmental impact compared to removing it. However, depending on the

legislative requirements at the time, environmental and economic factors, decommissioning

options in the future would be reviewed. These may include, leaving in-situ, recovery and/or

dismantling. Should recovery and dismantling be the preferred way forward, consultation would

be undertaken with the appropriate statutory consultees, the environmental conditions would be

reviewed and appropriate mitigation measures would be put in place during works.

Por

tmar

nock

Nea

r S

hore

and

Cab

le L

andf

all S

urve

y

P

age

31

Env

ironm

enta

l Rev

iew

Rep

ort

Tita

n E

nviro

nmen

tal S

urve

ys L

td

5 S

umm

ary

of A

sses

smen

t and

Miti

gatio

n

Ecological receptor

Impact

Proposed mitigation

Residual impact

Compensation and

enhancement measures

Baldoyle Bay cSAC

H1

31

0 -

Sa

lico

rnia

an

d O

the

r A

nn

uals

Colo

nis

ing

Mu

d a

nd

S

an

d

Th

ere

will

be

No Direct Impact

on

th

is h

ab

ita

t. T

he

ca

ble

with

in t

he

in

tert

ida

l a

rea

will

be

bu

rie

d a

t lo

w

wa

ter

the

reb

y g

ene

ratin

g m

inim

al su

sp

end

ed

so

lids.

No Indirect Impact

anticip

ate

d.

No

ne

N

on

e

No

ne

pro

pose

d

H1

33

0 -

Atla

ntic s

alt m

ea

do

ws

T

he

re w

ill b

e No Direct Impact

on

th

is h

ab

ita

t. T

he

ca

ble

with

in t

he

in

tert

ida

l a

rea

will

be

bu

rie

d a

t lo

w

wa

ter

the

reb

y g

ene

ratin

g m

inim

al su

sp

end

ed

so

lids.

No Indirect Impact

anticip

ate

d.

No

ne

N

on

e

No

ne

pro

pose

d

H1

41

0

- M

ed

ite

rra

ne

an

sa

lt

me

ado

ws

Th

ere

will

be

No Direct Impact

on

th

is h

ab

ita

t. T

he

ca

ble

with

in t

he

in

tert

ida

l a

rea

will

be

bu

rie

d a

t lo

w

wa

ter

the

reb

y g

ene

ratin

g m

inim

al su

sp

end

ed

so

lids.

No Indirect Impact

anticip

ate

d.

No

ne

N

on

e

No

ne

pro

pose

d

H1

14

0

- M

ud

fla

ts

and

sa

ndfla

ts

not

co

ve

red

by

se

aw

ate

r a

t lo

w t

ide

Th

ere

will

be

No Direct Impact

on

th

is h

ab

ita

t. T

he

ca

ble

with

in t

he

in

tert

ida

l a

rea

will

be

bu

rie

d a

t lo

w

wa

ter

the

reb

y g

ene

ratin

g m

inim

al su

sp

end

ed

so

lids.

No Indirect Impact

anticip

ate

d.

No

ne

N

on

e

No

ne

pro

pose

d

Ba

ldo

yle

Ba

y S

PA

Inte

rna

tion

ally

im

po

rta

nt

po

pula

tio

ns o

f P

ale

-be

llie

d

Bre

nt

Ge

ese

(B

ran

ta b

ern

icla

).

No Direct Impact

on

S

PA

. In

te

rms

of

po

ten

tial

ind

ire

ct

impa

ct

thro

ugh

dis

turb

an

ce

, w

ith

th

e s

ho

rt

du

ratio

n

of

wo

rk

an

d

the

exis

tin

g

ba

ckg

rou

nd

dis

turb

an

ce

le

ve

ls in

th

e a

rea

, th

e im

pa

ct

on

th

e

bir

ds

fro

m

the

S

PA

s

is

asse

sse

d

to

be

Neutral

(with

in t

he

to

lera

nce

le

ve

l o

f th

e b

irds)

an

d t

he

refo

re

no indirect impact

is a

nticip

ate

d.

No

ne

N

on

e

No

ne

pro

pose

d


H1

13

0 –

Estu

arie

s

Th

ere

w

ill

be

No Direct Impact

on

th

e

estu

ary

ha

bita

t w

hic

h i

s a

pp

roxim

ate

ly 1

.3km

to

th

e n

ort

h.

Th

e c

ab

le w

ith

in t

he

in

tert

ida

l a

rea

will

be

bu

rie

d a

t

low

w

ate

r th

ere

by

gen

era

ting

m

inim

al

su

spe

nde

d

so

lids. W

ith

th

is a

nd

th

e d

ista

nce

to

the

re

ce

pto

r, No

Indirect Impact

is a

nticip

ate

d.

Inte

rtid

al cab

le s

ection

bu

rie

d a

t lo

w w

ate

r to

re

du

ce

pro

duction

of susp

en

de

d s

olid

s.

No

ne

N

on

e p

rop

ose

d

Por

tmar

nock

Nea

r S

hore

and

Cab

le L

andf

all S

urve

y

P

age

32

Env

ironm

enta

l Rev

iew

Rep

ort

Tita

n E

nviro

nmen

tal S

urve

ys L

td

Ecological receptor

Impact

Proposed mitigation

Residual impact

Compensation and


Fin

e a

rea

of

rocky s

ho

re

so

uth

-east

of M

ala

hid

e a

nd

e

xte

nd

ing

to

wa

rds

Po

rtm

arn

ock.

Th

ere

will

be No Direct Impact

on t

he r

ocky s

ho

re

ha

bita

t w

hic

h is a

pp

roxim

ate

ly 2

50

m to

th

e n

ort

h.

As

the

cab

le tr

en

ch

w

ill b

e e

xca

va

ted

, th

e ca

ble

la

id

an

d b

ackfille

d a

t lo

w w

ate

r th

e p

ote

ntia

l im

pact

from

su

sp

en

de

d so

lids o

n th

e su

rro

un

din

g a

rea

w

ill b

e

sig

nific

an

tly r

ed

uce

d.

With t

he d

ista

nce

of

the

rocky

sh

ore

o

f th

e

cS

AC

fr

om

th

e

pro

pose

d

wo

rks

(+2

50m

),

an

d

the

na

tura

l b

ackg

roun

d

leve

ls

of

su

sp

en

de

d solid

s a

s a

re

su

lt o

f w

ave

a

ctio

n a

nd

off

sho

re f

ish

ing

activitie

s,

the

in

dire

ct

imp

act

on

th

e

rocky a

reas is

a

ssessed

to

b

e w

ith

in th

e n

atu

ral

tole

ran

ce o

f th

e h

ab

ita

t a

nd

th

ere

fore

No Indirect

Impact

is a

nticip

ate

d.

Bu

ria

l o

f ca

ble

in

inte

rtid

al a

rea

du

rin

g lo

w w

ate

r.

No

ne

N

on

e p

rop

ose

d


Inte

rna

tion

ally

im

po

rta

nt

po

pula

tio

n o

f B

ren

t G

ee

se

. No Direct Impact

on

S

PA

. In

te

rms

of

po

ten

tial

ind

ire

ct

impa

ct

thro

ugh

dis

turb

an

ce

, w

ith

th

e s

ho

rt

du

ratio

n

of

wo

rk

an

d

the

exis

tin

g

ba

ckg

rou

nd

dis

turb

an

ce

le

ve

ls in

th

e a

rea

, th

e im

pa

ct

on

th

e

bir

ds

fro

m

the

S

PA

s

is

asse

sse

d

to

be

Neutral

(with

in t

he

to

lera

nce

le

ve

l o

f th

e b

irds)

an

d t

he

refo

re

No Indirect Impact

is a

nticip

ate

d.

No

ne

N

on

e

No

ne

pro

pose

d

Ireland’s Eye cSAC

H1

22

0 -

Pe

renn

ial

ve

ge

tation

of

Sto

ny

ba

nks

(Co

asta

l ve

ge

tate

d s

hin

gle

).

Pro

po

se

d w

ork

s i

s d

ista

nt

and

th

ere

fore

No Direct

or Indirect Impact

on h

abita

t a

nticip

ate

d.

No

ne

N

on

e

No

ne

pro

pose

d

Iris

h R

ed

Da

ta B

ooks S

pe

cie

s

- S

ea

kale

(C

ram

be

ma

riti

me

) a

nd

H

en

ban

e

(Hy

os

cy

am

us

n

ige

r).

Pro

po

se

d w

ork

s i

s d

ista

nt

and

th

ere

fore

No Direct

or Indirect Impact

on h

abita

t a

nticip

ate

d.

No

ne

N

on

e

No

ne

pro

pose

d

Ireland’s Eye SPA

Ire

land

's E

ye

SP

A h

as

imp

ort

an

t p

opu

latio

ns o

f b

ree

din

g s

eab

irds.

No Direct Impact

on

S

PA

. In

te

rms

of

po

ten

tial

ind

ire

ct

imp

act

thro

ug

h d

istu

rba

nce t

o t

he

bir

ds,

with

the

sh

ort

d

ura

tion

of

wo

rk

and

th

e

exis

tin

g

ba

ckg

rou

nd

d

istu

rba

nce

le

ve

ls

in

the

a

rea

, th

e

imp

act

on

th

e b

irds f

rom

th

e S

PA

s is a

sse

sse

d to

be

Neutral

(with

in t

he

to

lera

nce

le

ve

l o

f th

e b

irds)

an

d

the

refo

re No Indirect Impact

is a

nticip

ate

d.

No

ne

N

on

e

No

ne

pro

pose

d

Por

tmar

nock

Nea

r S

hore

and

Cab

le L

andf

all S

urve

y

P

age

33

Env

ironm

enta

l Rev

iew

Rep

ort

Tita

n E

nviro

nmen

tal S

urve

ys L

td

Ecological receptor

Impact

Proposed mitigation

Residual impact

Compensation and


In

term

s

of

po

ten

tia

l in

dir

ect

eff

ects

on

th

e

foo

d

so

urc

e (

fish

), t

he

ca

ble

la

yin

g m

eth

od w

ill r

esu

lt i

n

so

me

lo

calis

ed

d

istu

rba

nce

to

the

se

ab

ed

an

d

su

rro

un

din

g a

rea

, b

ut

this

will

be

min

ima

l com

pa

red

to c

urr

en

t fish

ing

pra

ctice

s o

ff t

he b

each

. A

s s

uch

the

p

ote

ntia

l in

dir

ect

imp

acts

a

re a

sse

sse

d to

b

e

Neutral

an

d t

he

refo

re No Indirect Impact

ove

rall

is

an

ticip

ate

d.

Lambay Island cSAC

H1

23

0 -

Ve

ge

tate

d S

ea

Clif

fs

of

the

Atlan

tic a

nd

Ba

ltic

C

oa

sts

Pro

po

se

d

wo

rks

is

dis

tan

t a

nd

No Direct or

Indirect Impact

on

ha

bita

t a

nticip

ate

d.

No

ne

N

on

e

No

ne

pro

pose

d

Atla

ntic G

rey S

eals

T

he

p

rop

osed

w

ork

s is

8km

d

ista

nt

from

L

am

ba

y

Isla

nd

an

d a

s s

uch

th

ere

will

be

No Direct Impact

on

th

e b

ree

din

g s

ea

l co

lon

y.

Assessm

ent

of

eff

ects

on

A

tla

ntic G

rey S

ea

l o

ffsho

re is

dis

cussed

w

ith

in

Ma

rin

e M

am

ma

ls.

No

ne

N

on

e

No

ne

pro

pose

d

Lambay Island SPA

Ire

land

's E

ye

SP

A h

as

imp

ort

an

t p

opu

latio

ns o

f b

ree

din

g s

eab

irds.

Th

ere

will

be

No Direct Impact

on

th

e S

PA

wh

ich

is

locate

d o

ffsho

re s

om

e 8

km

to

th

e n

ort

hea

st

of

the

site

. In

dir

ect

imp

acts

are

not

an

ticip

ate

d d

ue

to

th

e

dis

tan

ce

.

No

ne

N

on

e

No

ne

pro

pose

d


De

sig

na

ted

as it is

a g

oo

d

exa

mp

le o

f a

n e

stu

ari

ne

syste

m.

Pro

po

se

d w

ork

s i

s d

ista

nt

and

th

ere

fore

No Direct

or Indirect Impact

on h

abita

t a

nticip

ate

d.

No

ne

N

on

e

No

ne

pro

pose

d

Rogerstown Estuary SPA

SP

A a

s it

sup

po

rts a

n

inte

rna

tio

na

lly im

po

rtan

t p

op

ula

tio

n o

f B

ren

t G

ee

se

.

Th

ere

will

be

No Direct Impact

on

th

e S

PA

. In

dire

ct

imp

acts

are

no

t a

nticip

ate

d d

ue

to

the

dis

tan

ce

.

No

ne

N

on

e

No

ne

pro

pose

d

Howth Head cSAC

H1

23

0 -

Ve

ge

tate

d S

ea

Clif

fs

of

the

Atlan

tic a

nd

Ba

ltic

C

oa

sts

.

Pro

po

se

d

wo

rks

is

dis

tan

t a

nd

No Direct or

Indirect Impact

on

ha

bita

t a

nticip

ate

d.

No

ne

N

on

e

No

ne

pro

pose

d

H4

03

0

–

Eu

rop

ea

n

Dry

H

ea

ths.

Pro

po

se

d w

ork

s i

s d

ista

nt

and

th

ere

fore

No Direct

or Indirect Impact

on h

abita

t a

nticip

ate

d.

No

ne

N

on

e

No

ne

pro

pose

d

Por

tmar

nock

Nea

r S

hore

and

Cab

le L

andf

all S

urve

y

P

age

34

Env

ironm

enta

l Rev

iew

Rep

ort

Tita

n E

nviro

nmen

tal S

urve

ys L

td

Ecological receptor

Impact

Proposed mitigation

Residual impact

Compensation and


Howth Head SPA

Fo

ur

se

abir

d s

pecie

s h

ave

p

op

ula

tio

ns o

f na

tio

nal

imp

ort

ance

. C

liffs

su

ppo

rt a

b

ree

din

g p

air

of

Pe

reg

rin

e

Fa

lco

ns.

Th

ere

will

be

No Direct Impact

on

th

e S

PA

. In

dire

ct

imp

acts

are

no

t a

nticip

ate

d d

ue

to

the

dis

tan

ce

.

No

ne

N

on

e

No

ne

pro

pose

d

Other features

Up

pe

r B

each

Are

a

Th

e co

nstr

uctio

n o

f th

e b

each

m

an

hole

, tr

enchin

g

on

th

e a

men

ity g

rasse

d a

rea

, a

ccessin

g t

he s

ho

re

at

the

ra

ise

d

be

ach

in

terf

ace

a

nd

sto

rag

e

of

ma

teria

ls ha

s th

e po

ten

tia

l to

cau

se

a

te

mp

ora

ry

an

d Minor

Impact

to t

his

are

a o

f L

oca

l le

ve

l.

Em

plo

y g

oo

d c

on

str

uctio

n p

ractice

in

pa

rtic

ula

r in

term

s o

f sto

rag

e a

nd

ha

ndlin

g o

f fu

els

, te

mpo

rary

sto

rag

e

of

ma

teri

als

.

Ca

re

take

n

to

min

imis

e

da

mag

e t

o th

e s

urr

oun

din

g g

rasse

d a

rea

. R

e-s

ee

d

an

y d

am

ag

ed

are

as.

Fe

nce

w

ork

a

rea

fo

r he

alth

a

nd

sa

fety

re

aso

ns.

Pro

vis

ion

of

ap

pro

pri

ate

se

cu

rity

if

an

y t

rench

/ho

le

left

op

en

ove

rnig

ht.

If c

on

ditio

ns p

erm

it,

a t

rench

less t

echn

olo

gy w

ou

ld

be

con

sid

ere

d f

or

the

be

ach

inte

rfa

ce

. D

iscussio

ns

wo

uld

be

held

with

th

e L

ocal C

ou

ncil

in a

dva

nce

of

the

be

ach

in

terf

ace

wo

rk,

and

th

e t

imb

ers

wo

uld

be

re

insta

ted t

o th

eir

exis

tin

g c

on

ditio

n.

No

ne

N

on

e p

rop

ose

d

Inte

rtid

al A

rea

On

th

e

bea

ch

the

p

ropo

se

d

cab

le

tre

nch

(ap

pro

xim

ate

ly 0

.5m

w

ide

dow

n th

e le

ng

th o

f th

e

sa

nd

y section

o

f be

ach

) w

ill

resu

lt

in

a

loca

lised

eco

log

ical

impa

ct.

T

he

sa

nd

e

xca

va

ted

w

ill

be

ba

ckfille

d a

nd

th

ere

fore

an

y m

ari

ne

fa

un

a w

ill be

ab

le t

o r

e-c

olo

nis

e t

he

are

a.

With

th

e w

ork

s b

ein

g

un

de

rta

ken

a

t lo

w w

ate

r, susp

end

ed solid

w

ill b

e

ke

pt

to a

min

imum

th

ere

by m

ain

tain

ing

th

em

with

in

na

tura

l b

ackg

roun

d

leve

ls.

Ove

rall

the

dir

ect

and

ind

ire

ct

imp

acts

fro

m t

he

ca

ble

la

yin

g w

ill b

e Minor

to Neutral

as t

he

y w

ill b

e s

ho

rt t

erm

, te

mp

ora

ry a

nd

localis

ed

. A

s

su

ch

the

im

pact

is

assessed

to

be

Insignificant

to No Impact.

Ca

ble

o

n

inte

rtid

al

sho

re

are

a

to

be

la

id

an

d

bu

ried

at

low

wa

ter.

Ba

ckfill

tre

nch w

ith

exca

va

ted

sa

nd a

nd r

ein

sta

te b

ea

ch

alo

ng

cab

le r

ou

te.

No

ne

N

on

e p

rop

os

ed

Por

tmar

nock

Nea

r S

hore

and

Cab

le L

andf

all S

urve

y

P

age

35

Env

ironm

enta

l Rev

iew

Rep

ort

Tita

n E

nviro

nmen

tal S

urve

ys L

td

Ecological receptor

Impact

Proposed mitigation

Residual impact

Compensation and


Off

sh

ore

Be

nth

ic E

colo

gy

Th

ere

w

ill

be

a

m

ino

r lo

calis

ed

sh

ort

du

ratio

n,

tem

po

rary

im

pa

ct

on

th

e m

arin

e e

colo

gy a

lon

g t

he

ca

ble

ro

ute

. M

an

y

be

nth

ic

spe

cie

s

wo

uld

b

e

exp

ecte

d to

su

rviv

e b

ein

g tu

rne

d in

th

e se

dim

en

t

an

d w

ill j

ust

re-b

ury

th

em

se

lve

s.

Th

e o

ve

rall

dir

ect

imp

act is

asse

sse

d t

o b

e Insignificant.

Th

ere

w

ill

be

a

lo

ca

lise

d

incre

ase

in

susp

en

ded

se

dim

en

ts

as

plo

ugh

ing

and

ca

ble

la

yin

g

take

s

pla

ce

. In

te

rms o

f in

dir

ect

impa

ct

this

is a

sse

sse

d t

o

be

of

min

or

sig

nific

ance

du

e t

o t

he

sm

all

vo

lum

e o

f

se

dim

en

t a

nticip

ate

d to

b

e d

istu

rbe

d a

nd

th

e fa

ct

tha

t ca

ble

la

yin

g a

ctivity sh

ou

ld b

e l

ess d

isru

ptive

wh

en

co

mp

are

d

to

loca

l fish

ing

p

ractice

s.

Th

e

ove

rall

ind

ire

ct

imp

act

on

lo

cal

be

nth

os i

s a

sse

ssed

to b

e Insignificant.

No

ne

N

on

e

No

ne

pro

pose

d

Ma

rin

e M

am

ma

ls

Ca

ble

la

yin

g w

ill t

ake

ap

pro

xim

ate

ly 1

6 t

o 2

0 d

ays

alo

ng

th

e e

ntire

ro

ute

betw

ee

n I

rela

nd

an

d W

ale

s

an

d a

s su

ch

dis

turb

ance

in

te

rms o

f no

ise

/vis

ua

l

imp

act

will

be

sh

ort

-te

rm.

Th

e p

resen

ce

of

the

ca

ble

layin

g

ve

sse

l sh

ould

b

e

no

mo

re

dis

turb

ing

th

at

oth

er

fish

ing

ve

sse

ls w

hic

h o

pe

rate

in

th

e im

med

iate

are

a.

In t

erm

s o

f p

ote

ntia

l in

tera

ction

with

th

e c

ab

le la

yin

g

ge

ar,

th

e v

esse

ls w

ill b

e s

low

mo

vin

g w

ith

min

imal

un

de

rwa

ter

mo

vin

g

pa

rts.

Th

e

activity

wo

uld

be

sim

ilar

to a

ve

sse

l la

yin

g l

ob

ste

r p

ots

an

d h

as b

een

asse

sse

d

as

a

lesse

r risk

to

ma

rin

e

mam

ma

ls

co

mp

are

d w

ith

, fo

r in

sta

nce

, tr

aw

ling

. A

s s

uch t

he

po

ten

tia

l im

pact

to m

ari

ne

m

am

ma

ls d

urin

g cab

le

insta

llation

is a

sse

ssed

to b

e Neutral

an

d t

he

refo

re

the

re s

hou

ld b

e No Impact

ove

rall.

A m

em

be

r o

f th

e sh

ips sta

ff sh

all

be

a

tr

ain

ed

ma

rine

m

am

ma

l o

bse

rve

r (M

MO

) a

nd

th

ey

will

mo

nito

r fo

r m

ari

ne m

am

ma

ls.

Ve

sse

l sh

all

be

fu

lly com

plia

nt

with

in

tern

ation

al

sa

fety

sta

nd

ard

s

as

spe

cifie

d

by

the

S

OL

AS

co

nve

ntio

n

an

d

all

rele

va

nt

loca

l a

nd

na

tio

na

l

reg

ula

tion

s.

No

ne

N

on

e

Por

tmar

nock

Nea

r S

hore

and

Cab

le L

andf

all S

urve

y

P

age

36

Env

ironm

enta

l Rev

iew

Rep

ort

Tita

n E

nviro

nmen

tal S

urve

ys L

td

Ecological receptor

Impact

Proposed mitigation

Residual impact

Compensation and


Fis

h, C

om

me

rcia

l F

ish

eries,

Re

cre

atio

na

l fishin

g

Th

ere

sh

ould

be

n

o dir

ect

imp

act

to fish,

as th

e

ve

sse

l w

ill b

e s

low

mo

vin

g a

nd

fis

h w

ill b

e a

ble

to

mo

ve

aw

ay f

rom

th

e a

rea

. F

ish

will

als

o b

e a

ble

to

avo

id

the

te

mpo

rary

lo

ca

lise

d

incre

ase

in

su

sp

en

de

d s

ed

imen

ts d

uri

ng

ca

ble

la

yin

g.

On

ce

th

e

ca

ble

la

yin

g v

esse

l h

as p

assed

ove

r a

n a

rea

th

e fis

h

will

be

able

to

mo

ve

back r

esultin

g in

No Impact.

In te

rms o

f fish

sp

aw

nin

g g

rou

nds a

nd

n

urs

erie

s,

the

p

rop

ose

d c

ab

le l

ayin

g w

ork

s w

ill o

nly

a

ffect

a

na

rro

w a

rea

of

se

ab

ed

an

d t

he

wo

rks w

ill b

e s

ho

rt in

du

ratio

n.

Altho

ug

h t

he

re m

ay b

e d

ire

ct

and

ind

irect

imp

acts

to

spa

wn

ing

or

juve

nile

fis

h,

the

im

pact

from

the

ca

ble

la

yin

g v

essel

will

be

mu

ch

le

ss t

ha

n t

ha

t

exp

eri

en

ce

d

fro

m

cu

rre

nt

fish

ing

p

ractice

s

in

the

are

a.

Th

e

mag

nitu

de

o

f p

ote

ntial

imp

act

on

fish

sp

aw

nin

g a

nd

nu

rse

ry g

rou

nd d

uri

ng

ca

ble

la

yin

g is

the

refo

re

asse

sse

d

as Neutral

giv

ing

an

o

ve

rall

asse

ssm

en

t o

f No Impact.

With

re

spe

ct

to

com

me

rcia

l fishin

g,

du

rin

g

insta

llation

th

e c

able

la

yin

g v

essel w

ill n

ot

be

able

to

mo

ve

o

ff

its

giv

en

ro

ute

a

nd

th

ere

fore

go

od

co

mm

unic

ation

will

be

re

quir

ed

to e

nsu

re t

hat

the

re

is no

in

tera

ctio

n b

etw

ee

n fish

ing ve

sse

ls a

nd

th

e

ca

ble

ve

sse

l. T

he

wo

rks w

ill b

e c

on

fin

ed

to

a n

arr

ow

co

rrid

or

an

d

with

a

n

ap

pro

pri

ate

sa

fety

d

ista

nce

su

ctio

n d

red

gin

g fo

r sh

ellf

ish cou

ld con

tinu

e.

With

the

sh

ort

d

ura

tio

n

an

d

sm

all

are

a

of

wo

rk,

the

ma

gnitud

e o

f p

ote

ntia

l im

pact

on

com

me

rcia

l fish

ing

du

ring

cab

le

layin

g

is

asse

sse

d

as Minor

to

Neutral,

g

ivin

g

an

o

ve

rall

assessm

ent

of Minor

Adverse t

o Insignificant Impact.

A

no

tice

to

m

arin

ers

w

ill

be

issue

d

so

th

at

an

y

recre

ation

al

ve

sse

ls w

ill b

e a

wa

re o

f th

e p

rop

ose

d

sh

ort

du

ratio

n w

ork

s.

Go

od

co

mm

un

ica

tion

w

ith

lo

ca

l fishe

rmen

a

nd

no

tice

to m

arin

ers

in

ad

van

ce o

f o

ffsh

ore

wo

rks.

Ve

sse

l sh

all

be

fu

lly com

plia

nt

with

in

tern

ation

al

sa

fety

sta

nd

ard

s

as

spe

cifie

d

by

the

S

OL

AS

co

nve

ntio

n

an

d

all

rele

va

nt

loca

l a

nd

na

tio

na

l

reg

ula

tion

s.

Minor Adverse

to Insignificant

Impact

is

an

ticip

ate

d

on

the

com

me

rcia

l

fishe

ries.

No

ne

Por

tmar

nock

Nea

r S

hore

and

Cab

le L

andf

all S

urve

y

P

age

37

Env

ironm

enta

l Rev

iew

Rep

ort

Tita

n E

nviro

nmen

tal S

urve

ys L

td

Ecological receptor

Impact

Proposed mitigation

Residual impact

Compensation and


La

ndscap

e a

nd

To

urism

Access t

o t

he

wo

rkin

g a

rea a

rou

nd t

he m

an

hole

an

d

alo

ng

th

e cab

le ro

ute

w

ill b

e re

str

icte

d w

he

n it is

be

ing la

id a

nd

bu

ried

. T

he

se

w

ork

s w

ill b

e fo

r a

sh

ort

pe

rio

d (

ap

pro

xim

ate

ly 5

da

ys).

If t

he

wo

rks a

re t

ime

to

be

ou

tsid

e t

he

main

tou

rist

se

aso

n,

avo

id

ho

lida

ys

and

po

ssib

ly

we

eke

nd

s

(de

pe

nd

ing

o

n

we

ath

er

an

d

off

sh

ore

tim

ing

) th

e

sh

ort

-te

rm

tem

po

rary

im

pa

ct

on

la

nd

sca

pe

a

nd

tou

rism

du

rin

g t

he

co

nstr

uction

ph

ase

is a

ssessed

to b

e Minor to Neutral

wh

ich

wo

uld

re

su

lt in

Minor

Adverse

Impact

to No Impact.

Tim

e

pro

posed

w

ork

s

to

be

o

uts

ide

b

ath

ing

se

aso

n

(mid

M

ay

to

Se

pte

mb

er)

an

d

holid

ays.

Avo

id w

ee

ke

nds if

possib

le.

Po

sitio

n

be

ach

m

an

hole

w

ork

s

to

avo

id

inte

rfe

rence

with

th

e t

arm

ac f

oo

tpa

th.

Dis

cussio

ns

to

be

h

eld

in

a

dva

nce

w

ith

th

e

Lo

cal

Co

un

cils

co

nce

rnin

g th

e w

ork

s.

Em

plo

y g

oo

d c

on

str

uctio

n p

ractice

an

d f

en

ce

wo

rk

are

a fo

r h

ea

lth

a

nd safe

ty re

aso

ns.

Pro

vis

ion

o

f

ap

pro

pri

ate

secu

rity

if a

ny tr

en

ch/h

ole

le

ft op

en

ove

rnig

ht.

Min

or

sh

ort

du

ratio

n

an

d

tem

po

rary

dis

turb

an

ce

fo

r

be

ach

use

rs.

No

ne

Operation and Decommissioning

All

rece

pto

rs

Op

era

tion

al

desig

n l

ife

is 2

5-4

0 y

ea

rs.

Th

ere

will

be

no

su

rfa

ce

str

uctu

re a

sso

cia

ted

w

ith

th

e m

an

ho

le.

Th

e

inte

rtid

al

ca

ble

w

ill

be

b

uri

ed

to

a

d

ep

th

of

ap

pro

xim

ate

ly

2m

a

nd

o

ffsh

ore

a

roun

d

1m

if

po

ssib

le.

Un

de

r n

orm

al

cir

cu

msta

nce

s,

the

ca

ble

will

o

pe

rate

w

ith

ou

t an

y su

b-s

ea

w

ork

s o

r ro

utine

ma

inte

nan

ce

. If

ma

inte

na

nce w

ork

is

re

qu

ired

th

is

wo

uld

re

su

lt i

n s

imila

r e

ffe

cts

to

th

ose

id

en

tified

fo

r

insta

llation

.

Th

e

pro

po

sed

ca

ble

syste

m

is

sh

ort

le

ng

th

fib

re

op

tic c

able

s,

with

ou

t re

pe

ate

rs.

As s

uch

th

ere

wo

uld

be

no

asso

cia

ted

ele

ctr

ic o

r m

ag

ne

tic f

ield

s a

nd

no

imp

act o

n t

he

ma

rine

eco

log

y o

ffsho

re.

De

co

mm

issio

nin

g o

f th

e c

able

wo

uld

be

re

vie

we

d a

t

the

a

pp

rop

riate

tim

e

an

d

the

m

ost

ap

pro

pri

ate

op

tion

, in

clu

din

g

lea

vin

g

in-s

itu

wo

uld

b

e

co

nsid

ere

d.

Un

de

rtake

app

rop

ria

te c

onsu

lta

tion

in

ad

va

nce

of

an

y m

ain

ten

an

ce

/ de

com

mis

sio

nin

g w

ork

s.

Imp

act

an

d m

itig

atio

n to

be r

evie

we

d a

t tim

e o

f w

ork

s.

To

be

re

vie

we

d.

No

ne



6 Conclusion

The route selection process has been undertaken to identify the least sensitive alignment for the

cable. In addition, the plough and lay deployment technique which is to be used is considered to

offer the fastest and least destructive method of undertaking the work. Seasonal timing, as well

as a work schedule to coincide with tides, will also mitigate potential localised impact.

Sensitive ecological receptors including designated sites are present within the vicinity of the

landfall works and careful construction practices are proposed to ensure avoidable impacts do

not take place. Consideration of timing with regard to recreational use of the beach will also be

an important factor in minimising disruption to the area, as will good communication to minimise

disruption to offshore commercial fisheries in the area.

Overall the laying of a proposed fibre-optic cable at Portmarnock near Dublin, Ireland does not

appear to be constrained by ecological, landscape or tourism factors. In part this is due to the

small diameter size of the cable as well as its inherently inert properties. With mitigation, the

temporary disturbance of the dynamic coastal environment by the proposals is considered to

comprise an insignificant impact.



7 References

Coastal Monitoring Project 2004-2006 A Report to the National Parks and Wildlife Service, Dublin. 2009 By Tim Ryle, Anne Murray, Kieran Connolly & Melinda Swann Council Directive 92/43/EEC on the conservation of natural habitats and of wild fauna and flora (1992) Cowrie (July 2005) Electromagnetic Fields Review, The potential effects of electromagnetic fields generated by sub-sea power cables associated with offshore wind farm developments on electrically and magnetically sensitive marine organisms – a review. (COWRIE-EM FIELD 2-06-2004) Department of Energy and Climate Change. UK Offshore Energy Strategic Environmental Assessment, Future Leasing for Offshore Wind Farms and Licensing for Offshore Oil & Gas and Gas Storage, Jan 2009. Appendix 3 – Environmental Baseline Fingal County Council Development Plan 2005 – 2011 Fingal County Council Draft Development Plan 20011 – 2017 Foreshore and Dumping at Sea (Amendment) Act 2009 Global Marine Systems Ltd (2009) Dublin to Anglesey Proposed Subsea Cable System Cable Route Desk Study, December 2009. Prepared by Global Marine Systems Ltd For Geo Networks Ltd http://www.fishinginireland.info/sea/east/dublin/index.htm http://www.jncc.gov.uk/page-5040 http://eunis.eea.europa.eu/habitats Institute of Ecology and Environmental Management (IEEM) Guidelines for Ecological Impact Assessment in Britain and Ireland, Marine and Coastal (2010) National Parks and Wildlife Service Department of the Environment, Heritage and Local Government (2008) report on The Status of EU Protected Habitats and Species in Ireland Natural Resources Consultants, Inc (NRC) 2009, Major Bottom Contact Fisheries Along the Proposed Cable Route From Dublin to Anglesey. Appendix E of Dublin to Anglesey Proposed Subsea Cable System Cable Route Desk Study (December 2009)

The Food and Environment Protection Act, 1985

Telecommunications Act, 1984

Titan Environmental Surveys Ltd, Porth Dafarch Nearshore and Cable Landfall Survey

Environmental Review Report April 2011 (CS0307/R3/V1). United Nations Convention on Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), Section 112, Article 79, Para 5.



Figures

Figure 3.3 Overview of Species Recorded on Portmarnock Beach

Appendix 1 Summary of Consultation Responses

Conta

ct

Date

/Subje

ct

Response

The C

om

mis

sio

ner

of

Iris

h

Lig

hts

A

pri

l 2

010/S

urv

ey

16/0

3/2

011 –

Sta

ge 1

ca

ble

lett

er

No o

bje

ctions w

ith p

lans to c

om

ple

te s

urv

ey.

Aw

aitin

g r

esp

onse

Depart

ment of

Agricu

lture

F

isheries a

nd F

ood (

se

a f

ish

contr

ol div

isio

n)

16/0

3/2

011 –

Sta

ge

1 c

ab

le lett

er

The

y w

ill b

e c

on

tacte

d thro

ugh t

he f

ore

shore

lic

ence p

rocess a

nd w

ait t

o

form

ally

respo

nd t

hen.

DE

HLG

– F

ore

shore

Un

it

Apri

l 2

010/S

urv

ey

Pro

vid

ed u

pda

te o

n lia

ison w

ith I

rish S

takehold

ers

.

DE

HLG

– F

ore

shore

Un

it

10

th M

ay 2

011

F

ollo

w u

p m

eeting t

o d

iscu

ss p

roje

ct pro

gre

ss a

nd d

raft

info

rmation in

support

of

perm

it.

DE

HLG

– E

ng

ine

ering

Div

isio

n

16/0

3/2

011 –

Sta

ge

1 c

ab

le lett

er

Thank y

ou f

or

keepin

g th

e D

epart

ment in

form

ed in r

ela

tio

n to

the

Mari

ne

Surv

ey f

or

this

case. In

rela

tion

to t

he lett

er

att

ached I

would

sug

gest th

at a

ll fo

rmal com

munic

ations to

this

De

part

ment should

be s

ent to

th

e F

ore

shore

U

nit,

as th

ey w

ill b

e r

espo

nsib

le f

or

adm

inis

tering

th

is F

ore

shore

Lic

ence

App

licatio

n a

nd a

lso th

e c

o-o

rdin

atio

n o

f yo

ur

req

uest fo

r P

re A

pp

lica

tio

n

Consultation(

in t

his

case it

is lik

ely

th

at b

oth

Fore

shore

Unit a

nd E

ngin

eeri

ng

In

specto

rate

a

nd p

ossib

ly o

ther

ke

y inte

rnal C

onsu

lte

es w

ou

ld a

tten

d a

t an

y

requeste

d p

re a

pp

lica

tio

n m

eetings).

DE

HLG

– U

nderw

ate

r A

rchaeo

log

y

16/0

3/2

011 –

Sta

ge

1 c

ab

le lett

er

Would

be h

ap

py t

o m

eet up

to d

iscuss the p

roje

ct a

nd its

arc

haeo

log

ical

implic

atio

ns. It w

ould

be ide

al to

ha

ve

yo

ur

pro

ject arc

haeo

log

ist/

arc

haeo

log

ical co

nsultant

in a

ttend

ance a

t th

e m

eetin

g to h

elp

sort

out a

ny

issue th

at m

ay a

rise.

DE

HLG

– N

atio

nal P

ark

s a

nd

Wild

life S

erv

ice

16/0

3/2

011 –

Sta

ge

1 c

ab

le lett

er

No r

esponse

to d

ate

.

DE

HLG

– F

ish

eries

16/0

3/2

011 –

Sta

ge

1 c

ab

le lett

er

No r

esponse

to d

ate

.

Easte

rn R

eg

ion

al F

isheri

es B

oard

A

pri

l 2

010/S

urv

ey

No o

bje

ctions w

ith p

lans to c

om

ple

te s

urv

ey.

Federa

tion

of

Iris

h F

ish

erm

en

A

pri

l 2

010/S

urv

ey

16/0

3/2

011 –

Sta

ge

1 c

ab

le lett

er

No r

esponse

to d

ate

. A

wa

itin

g r

esp

onse

Iris

h W

ildlif

e T

rust

Apri

l 2

010/S

urv

ey

16/0

3/2

011 –

Sta

ge

1 c

ab

le lett

er

Aw

aitin

g r

esp

onse

Aw

aitin

g r

esp

onse

Iris

h M

ari

ne F

edera

tio

n

Apri

l 2

010/S

urv

ey

No r

esponse

to d

ate

.

Iris

h S

ea f

isheri

es b

oard

– B

ord

Ia

scaig

h M

hara

A

pri

l 2

010/S

urv

ey

No r

esponse

to d

ate

.

Marin

e S

urv

ey O

ffic

e

Apri

l 2

010/S

urv

ey

Did

not th

ink that th

e p

rop

osed s

urv

ey w

as the c

oncern

of

the M

ari

ne S

urv

ey

Off

ice.

16/0

3/2

011 –

Sta

ge

1 c

ab

le lett

er

Ple

ase c

ontin

ue t

o k

eep u

s info

rmed. E

specia

lly in r

ela

tion

to v

essels

to b

e

utilis

ed

in

the

pro

ject

wh

ich m

ay r

equ

ire s

urv

ey a

nd issue o

f cert

ific

ation b

y

this

off

ice.

Marin

e Institu

te o

f Ir

ela

nd

A

pri

l 2

010/S

urv

ey

16/0

3/2

011 –

Sta

ge

1 c

ab

le lett

er

Seem

ed p

ositiv

e in t

ele

ph

one th

at th

ere

would

beno o

bje

ctions w

ith p

lans to

com

ple

te s

urv

ey.

Aw

aitin

g w

ritten

response

. N

o r

esponse

to d

ate

Nationa

l P

ark

s a

nd W

ildlif

e

Serv

ice –

DE

HLG

A

pri

l 2

010/S

urv

ey

No r

esponse

to d

ate

Nationa

l M

onum

ents

Serv

ice

Apri

l 2

010/S

urv

ey

No r

esponse

to d

ate

Sea F

isheri

es P

rote

ctio

n

Auth

ority

M

arc

h 2

010/S

urv

ey

16/0

3/2

011 –

Sta

ge

1 c

ab

le lett

er

Aw

aitin

g r

esp

onse t

o e

mail.

A

wa

itin

g r

esp

onse.

Geo-UK Portmarnock Nearshore and Cable Landfall Survey … · Nearshore and Cable Landfall Survey...

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Transcript of Geo-UK Portmarnock Nearshore and Cable Landfall Survey … · Nearshore and Cable Landfall Survey...