Fishermen fear sale of Dublin harbours

Fishermen have expressed concern over the proposed sale of Balbriggan and Skerries harbours by the Dublin Port Company.

The company confirmed yesterday that it is to advertise for tenders for the harbours within the next six to eight weeks.

The fishermen claim the transfer of the harbours into private ownership may put their livelihoods in jeopardy and they plan to hold a public meeting on Monday next.

The fishermen say they fear that, should the harbours become privately owned, they could be prevented from working and berthing their boats there.

Initial hopes that the harbours, which do not generate income for Dublin Port, might be transferred to Fingal County Council for the continued benefit of the community appear to have fallen through.

The fishermen are now hoping that a broadly based campaign to retain the harbours in public ownership will be supported by members of the local communities. They are also exploring the possibility of setting up a co-operative to put in a bid for Balbriggan Harbour.

A spokeswoman for Fingal County Council confirmed that the council had been offered control of the harbours a number of years ago, subject to it accepting a €5.2 million repair bill.

According to the council, the repairs to the Balbriggan piers were estimated at about €3.9 million while those to the piers at Skerries harbour were estimated at about €1.3 million.

The council indicated that it would consider taking over the harbours once the essential repairs were carried out, but would not be in a position to undertake annual maintenance with a heavy start-up cost.

Fingal County Council listed Balbriggan Harbour as a protected structure in 2000, and the harbour at Skerries is listed in the current draft of the county development plan.

A designation of protected structure would make it difficult for any potential developer to build on the piers, although there may be some potential in surrounding lands.

Another difficulty in Skerries is access, where the road to the harbour is in poor condition. According to development sources, "It is extremely unlikely that this will lead to apartments at the end of either pier".

The public meeting on the issue will be held at 8 p.m. on Monday in the Milestone, Balbriggan.