Fisheries (Consolidation) Act 1959
Restriction on use of fishing weirs, fishing mill dams or fixed engines in freshwater.
100.—(1) It shall not be lawful for any person to use in the freshwater portion of any river or in any lake any fishing weir, fishing mill dam or fixed engine for the capture of fish unless such fishing weir, fishing mill dam or fixed engine was in existence and was lawfully used during the open fishing season of one or more of the three years 1936, 1937 and 1938.
(2) Where one or more boxes in a fishing weir or fishing mill dam was lawfully used during the open fishing season of one or more of the three years 1936, 1937 and 1938, such fishing weir or fishing mill dam shall, for the purposes of subsection (1) of this section, be deemed to have been lawfully used during such open fishing season.
F107[(3) If any person uses any fishing weir, fishing mill dam or fixed engine in contravention of this section, such person shall be guilty of an offence and shall be liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding £1,000, and if after conviction the contravention is continued, that person shall be guilty of a further offence on each day during which the contravention continues and shall be liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding £500.]
F107[(4) The provisions of this section shall not apply to engines used for the capture of fish other than salmon, trout or eels.]
(5) F108[(a) F109[Inland Fisheries Ireland] may, if it thinks fit, grant to—
(i) the occupier of a fishing engine (being a fishing weir, fishing mill dam or fixed engine) for the capture of eels, or
(ii) any person in respect of a long line (whether fixed or otherwise),
an authorisation (in this section called an eel fishery authorisation) to use such fishing engine or long line for the capture of eels.]
(b) F109[Inland Fisheries Ireland] may attach to an eel fishery authorisation such conditions (including a condition limiting the period during which the authorisation is to remain in force) F108[as it thinks fit].
(c) F108[F109[Inland Fisheries Ireland], if it so thinks fit], may amend an eel fishery authorisation within ten years from the date on which the authorisation was granted.
(d) F109[Inland Fisheries Ireland] may revoke an eel fishery authorisation—
(i) if the holder thereof is convicted of an offence under the repealed enactments or an offence under any provision of this Act, or
(ii) F108[if F109[Inland Fisheries Ireland] is satisfied] that there has been a breach of any condition attached to the authorisation.
F110[(e) If the holder of an eel fishery authorisation fails to comply with the conditions attached to that authorisation he shall be guilty of an offence under this subsection and shall be liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding £1,000.]
F110[(f) Where a person is convicted of an offence under this subsection, any fish and any fixed engine in respect of which the offence was committed shall, as a statutory consequence of conviction, stand forfeited.]
(6) The following provisions shall apply in relation to the amendment or revocation of an eel fishery authorisation under this section—
F108[(a) F109[Inland Fisheries Ireland] shall not amend or revoke the authorisation unless and until it has given by post to the holder of the authorisation at least one fortnight's notice in writing stating that F109[Inland Fisheries Ireland] has under consideration, as the case may be, the amendment or revocation of the authorisation,]
(b) the notice shall also state—
(i) in case it states that F109[Inland Fisheries Ireland] has under consideration the amendment of the authorisation—the specific amendment under consideration and the grounds on which it is so under consideration, or
(ii) in case it states that F109[Inland Fisheries Ireland] has under consideration the revocation of the authorisation—the grounds on which such revocation is so under consideration,
(c) F109[Inland Fisheries Ireland] shall consider any representations in relation to such amendment or revocation, as the case may be, made F108[to it] by the holder of the authorisation before the expiration of the notice.
F111[(6A) F109[Inland Fisheries Ireland] shall not exercise a power under subsection (5) or (6) of this section F112[…] and unless it has first consulted the Marine Institute, and in exercising the power it shall have regard to any scientific advice given to it by the Marine Institute and any policy guidelines or instructions the Minister may establish or give.]
(7) Nothing in this section shall apply to—
(a) the use by the Electricity Supply Board of—
(i) a fishing weir for the capture of eels erected by the said Board, or
(ii) a fishing weir erected by the said Board in exercise of the powers conferred on the said Board by section 101, or
(b) the use of a fishing engine (being a fishing weir, fishing mill dam or fixed engine) in respect of which there is for the time being in force an eel fishery authorisation, so long as it is used in accordance with such authorisation.
Annotations
Amendments:
F107
Substituted (1.08.1994) by Fisheries (Amendment) Act 1994 (23/1994), s. 19(1)(a), (b), S.I. No. 243 of 1994.
F108
Substituted (20.12.1999) by Fisheries (Amendment) Act 1999 (35/1999), s. 27(c)(i), (ii), (iii), (iv), (v), (vi), (vii), S.I. No. 419 of 1999.
F109
Substituted (1.07.2010) by Inland Fisheries Act 2010 (10/2010), s. 8(3)(a) and sch. 2 part 1 paras. (1), (2) item 15(a), (b), (c)(i), S.I. No. 262 of 2010.
F110
Inserted (1.08.1994) by Fisheries (Amendment) Act 1994 (23/1994), s. 19(1)(d), S.I. No. 243 of 1994. A fine of £1,000 converted (1.01.1999) to €1269.74. This translates into a class C fine, not exceeding €2,500, as provided (4.01.2011) by Fines Act 2010 (8/2010), ss. 3, 6(2) and table ref. no. 2, S.I. No. 662 of 2010.
F111
Inserted (20.12.1999) by Fisheries (Amendment) Act 1999 (35/1999), s. 27(c)(viii), S.I. No. 419 of 1999.
F112
Deleted (1.07.2010) by Inland Fisheries Act 2010 (10/2010), s. 8(3)(a) and sch. 2 part 1 paras. (1), (2) item 15(c)(ii), S.I. No. 262 of 2010.
Modifications (not altering text):
C58
Penalties under section altered (1.07.2010) by Inland Fisheries Act 2010 (10/2010), s. 77(1), (8) and table part 1, S.I. No. 262 of 2010. Note that the full history of the alteration of penalties under this section can be found in the annotations at the beginning of the Act under “Be it enacted by the Oireachtas as follows”.
A fine of €2,000 translates into a class C fine, not greater than €2,500, as provided (4.01.2011) by Fines Act 2010 (8/2010), ss. 3, 6(2) and table ref. no. 1, S.I. No. 662 of 2010; a fine of €1,000 translates into a class D fine, not greater than €1,000, as provided (4.01.2011) by Fines Act 2010 (8/2010), ss. 3, 7(2) and table ref. no. 1, S.I. No. 662 of 2010.
Alteration of certain penalties under the Principal Act, the Act of 1962 or the Act of 1994.
77.— (1) A person convicted by the District Court of an offence for which a penalty is provided in any section of the Principal Act specified in column (2) of Part 1 of the Table to this section at any reference number shall, in lieu of so much of the penalty so provided as consists of a fine, imprisonment, a fine or imprisonment, or a fine and imprisonment, be liable to the appropriate penalty specified in column (3) of that Part at that reference number, and that section shall be read and have effect accordingly.
…
(8) This section has effect in respect of offences committed after the establishment day.
|
Reference Number |
Section of Principal Act |
Penalty |
|
(1) |
(2) |
(3) |
|
… |
… |
… |
|
6. |
100(3). |
A fine not exceeding €2,000, and if after conviction the contravention is continued, that person commits a further offence on each day during which the contravention continues and is liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding €1,000. |
|
100(5)(e) |
A fine not exceeding €2,000. |
|
|
… |
… |
… |
C59
Application of subs. (1) restricted (1.08.1994) by Fisheries (Amendment) Act 1994 (23/1994), s. 19(2), S.I. No. 243 of 1994.
Amendment of section 100 of Principal Act.
19.— …
(2) Subsection (1) of section 100 of the Principal Act shall not apply, and shall be deemed never to have applied, to a fishing engine used in accordance with an authorisation purporting to have been issued by the Minister under the section.
Editorial Notes:
E170
Previous affecting provision: subss. (5)(b), (d), (6)(a), (6)(b)(i), (ii), (6)(c), amended (20.12.1999) by Fisheries (Amendment) Act 1999 (35/1999), s. 27(c)(ii), (iv), (v), (vi), (vii), S.I. No. 419 of 1999; superseded (1.07.2010) as per F-note above.