Mull Aquaculture and Fisheries Association  (MAFA)

Annual General Meeting and Conference  ( Provisional minutes, to be confirmed)

 Tuesday 11th December 2007, Craignure Hall

AGM

1              Present Bob Lawson (Chair), Nick Turnbull (Secretary) and around 25 members and           associate members.

2              Apologies              Nick Mawhinney, John Hermes, Roddy McCuish (spelling), James Hilder

3              Approval of minutes of last year's meeting – proposed by Sally Davis, seconded by Douglas Wilson (once the month had been changed from September to December!) 

These minutes are on the website – www.mull-afa.co.uk

4              Matters arising

                None

5              Treasurer's report

Copies of these were distributed. (do you want more detail here?)

6              Secretary’s report

Nick reported that the Marine Park was off the agenda for the foreseeable future.  In January there had been a meeting with the Mallaig and Northwest Fishermens' Association and as a result of this a voluntary code of conduct had been set up.  There had also been a meeting in Oban regarding Inshore Fishing Groups though it seems that there are problems regarding the boundaries and the regulations governing these.  There had also been the first meeting of the Scottish Islands Federation.  In the New Year, there will be the new Marine Bill which will lay down the strategy for scallop, crab and lobster fishing.

7              Election of Office Bearers

Bob Lawson stood down as Chair – his health has not been good and he has no boat at present.  He was thanked for the work he had done as Chair and for his contribution to the Marine Park debate.

Election of Office Bearers

Chair                                     Douglas Wilson - proposed by Nick Turnbull, seconded by A Mackie

Secretary/Treasurer          Nick agreed to continue to do this

Member Steve Paterson – proposed by Douglas Wilson, seconded by Andy Durie.

Committee            Paul Gallagher                       Scallop fishing

 (existing)               Steve Barlow                        Commercial Divers

                                Andy Durie                           Static gear

                                Alistair Mackie                     Static gear

                                Sally Davis                            Aquaculture

                                Nick Mawhinney                  Shell fish farmer and marine engineer

It was not clear if either Steve Barlow or Paul Gallagher wished to remain on the committee as they were not at the meeting.

Conference

The Council's Role in Seabed Regulation

Mark Steward ( Marine Development Officer for Argyll and Bute Council)

He outlined the change that has taken place since April 2007 regarding the planning consent for marine fish farming.  This used to be under the control of the Crown and would be have to be renewed every 15 years.  Now it is the Council that makes the final decision after consultation with bodies such as SNH, SEPA, local communities.   The cost of planning has been set down by the Scottish Executive but the way that this has been interpreted varies with the local council.  It is much more expensive and this is to be reviewed in the near future.  He also talked about Coastal planning in particular that for Loch Fyne – the first draft for the proposals for this are due in March 2008.  Other areas are under consideration – for example the Sound of Mull

The Sound of Mull Project

Sarah Benfield

This is part of the Scottish Sustainable Marine Environment Initiative  (SSMEI) established in 2002.

 There are four pilot projects – the others are Clyde, Shetland and Berwickshire – and the aim is the management of marine resources and sustainable development.   Information is being gathered – the area is being mapped and information from a variety of sources such as geographical, archeology, fishing, population, employment – and network groups established.  The first meeting (of the interested groups ? Check with Gordon?) was in November in ?Craignure and the next will be in Loch Aline in February with drop-in sessions on 18th (month??) in Loch Aline and 19th (month) in Tobermory.

The Role of IFGs

Patrick Stewart

He talked of the Annual Fisheries debates in Brussels, the limitations of  marine spatial planning and the discussion paper on Marine Conservation and Regulation  He was concerned that the IFGs may have no more power than exists at present. There should be a broader view and he stressed that groups such as MAFA and the Clyde Fishermens' Association should working together to ensure that the proposed IFG stands a chance of succeeding and it is important that the younger fishermen get involved.