By Sonya McLean
A master of a shipping vessel who exceeded the quota for haddock he was entitled to fish off the south of Ireland has been fined €2,000.
Gerard Caulfield (55) of Abbey Street, Howth, Co Dublin, pleaded guilty at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court to a number of charges contrary to section 14 of the Sea Fisheries and Maritime Jurisdiction Act 2006.
He also pleaded guilty to exceeding quota contrary to section 12(13) of The Sea Fisheries and Maritime Jurisdiction Act 2006. The maximum penalty for the offence is a €35,000 fine.
Kieran Kelly BL, prosecuting, told the court that Caulfield was working as the master of a vessel, called the Endeavour, that was fishing off the south of Ireland in February 2023.
Counsel told the court that as a master of the vessel Caulfield was responsible for ensuring that quotas are not exceeded in that particular month for various species of fish. He was also responsible for ensuring that the data regarding the catch was accurately recorded and that the fish, which had been caught, were properly stored on the ship.
At that time, in that area of the sea, the vessel was permitted to catch 10 tonne of haddock in one particular area and 12 tonne of haddock in an adjacent area.
An inspection was carried out on the ship on February 28, 2023 and it was found that the fishing quota for haddock in that area had been exceeded by 4.5 tonne. Mr Kelly told the court that at that time 4.5 tonne of haddock would have a market value of just over €8,200.
It was also discovered that certain fish species had also been miscategorised with haddock being described instead as hake or whiting. Counsel explained that these quotas are in place because of the “high commercial interest” of certain species of fish that can be over-fished.
The European Union impose these restrictions to allow for the sustainability of the fish and to protect fishing into the future so that the stock in the sea is replenished.
Caulfield has no previous convictions. He does now have points on his master’s license having been convicted of such offences, which makes it difficult to secure employment as a master.
Defending counsel said that at the time of the inspection Caulfield was working with many new crew members. These crew members were new to the ship and there were language barriers in relation to how the fish were stored and how the quotas should be observed, according to Caulfield.
Counsel also said her client had “a genuine misunderstanding” of the quotas that applied to the two adjacent areas of the sea he was fishing at that particular time. She said he had not realised he had reached the quota in that particular area.
Counsel said that her client is a single man who lives with his elderly mother. She said he is currently working as a deck hand and is earning €23,000 per year.
Judge Martin Nolan said this was the first fishery protection case that this court has dealt with. He said these regulations and laws are in place to preserve the fishing industry and fish reserves.
“I think everyone wants to be able to eat fish in 20 years time,” the judge said, adding that this is the ambition of these laws.
The judge said the evidence before the court was that Caulfield was the skipper of the vessel, and not its owner and “whatever profits made were probably not his”.
He said he had considered the mitigation and that it appears Caulfield is “not a well-off man”. He imposed a €2,000 fine with 12 months to pay.