EPA - Ireland's Environment, An Integrated Assessment - 2020

Ireland’s Environment – An Integrated Assessment 2020 Endangered and Threatened Species A number of non-commercial fish species (e.g. sea lamprey, twaite shad, angel shark) are threatened because of habitat loss/disruption and by-catch. Several elasmobranch species, including the sharks, rays and skates, are listed as critically endangered under Ireland’s Red List while other comparatively long-lived protected species remain vulnerable to environmental degradation from human activities in Ireland’s maritime area (e.g. some marine bird species and other top predators, migratory baleen whales, deep-diving cetaceans). Protecting Marine and Coastal Areas Our marine and coastal areas are impacted by several human-induced pressures, including fishing, eutrophication, climate change and litter. While independently these issues continue to put pressure on our fragile marine systems, their combined impact is not fully understood and needs to be assessed through additional research and monitoring. Programmes of measures for the marine environment rely heavily on existing measures under the WFD and Common Fisheries Policy. While the integration of measures under instruments and Marine Strategy Framework, Birds and Habitats Directives are important, measures that directly protect the marine water column and wider seabed habitats need to be implemented. 218