Irish Whale & Dolphin Group To Host Roadshow In Clare

0:00Irish well and dolphin group in collaboration with fair seas as returning home to kill rush on Saturday the 14th of March as part of a series of free in-person evening events in coastal towns around the country the local groups Rochows aim into connect coastal communities and local members of the group with the latest developments in marine conservation, marine protected areas and the future of Ireland Seas. And to find out more, I'm joined on the line by Eva Lambert, the marine policy and advocacy officer with the Irish well and dolphin group Eva. Good morning to you. Hi, good morning, Alan. Thanks for having me. Can you tell us more about the Rochow where else is it going and what can people expect from the event? Yes, so we've started this year Rochow because we want to connect a bit more with our local members. So the Irish well and dolphin group has had local groups for a good number of years where we have really active members. And we just wanted to thank the members that have been on our board for so long and we also want to include more people.

1:00So we've created the Rochow when we're visiting all our local groups and we're gigging them an opportunity to just understand what the group is doing and how they can participate in any events we're doing or anything the group is advertising for. We also want to give them an update on what's going on in Ireland Seas and enable people to also learn about what is in the seas, what they can observe if they go to the coast. We are also partnering this event with fair seas. He's just giving an update on marine protect areas in Ireland and where the legislation is in Ireland. And one of the key topics, as I mentioned, that would be discussed added either is marine conservation. What are some of the biggest challenges currently facing whales, dolphins and other marine life in our waters? Yes, conservation is the key work that Irish well and dolphin group is doing. So our mission is just to promote the understanding of cetaceans and their habitat through education and research. At the moment, conservation is at the mass of every dolphin. There's a lot going on with MPA legislation at the moment in Ireland.

2:07There is a new legislation that says that every EU country needs to have their maritime area protected by 30% by 2030. So we're already in 26 Ireland only at 9% at the moment. So there's a huge urgency into protected Ireland Seas. And of course, this falls into the protections of whales and dolphins in Ireland as they're facing many threats and pressures in Irish seas. Whether it is contraption worse than force or maritime traffic or global change, those are huge threats. They're our species are facing at the moment. Some people listening even might be saying, well, you know, what can I do in turn to help protect whales, dolphins and marine ecosystems? Like what role can ordinary members of the public play? That's exactly why we're doing this, Rochelle, is to let the people be active in those matters, not only watching from a firby being able to participate in everything that we're doing.

3:08So being part of the Rochelle is the first step. It's just coming and learn more because of course knowledge is key. The more you know about it, the more you can ask on this and the more you can tell other people. And basically the members in the area that we're going to the Rochelle can come to those events, learn what they can do, participate in our event, do whale watching because of course any decision is led by evidence space. We need science. We need the data. This is the key role that our members are doing is just walking out on the beach or on our shores observes what's in the sea and record all those data. That's the key thing that we're asking for people at the moment. Okay, so the Rochelle will be asked Kilrush in this Saturday at the Shannon Dolphin Center at the Arshwell and Dolphin Group's headquarters from two to five PM and their Marine Policy and Advocacy Officer. Eva Lambert, Eva, appreciate you joining us this morning. Thank you. Thank you so much, Alan. I hope we'll see as much people as we can.

4:11Eva Lambert there with us on Tuesday's morning focus.