Chapter IV.

Regulations as to Fishing Weirs and Fishing Mill Dams.

107. —(1) In every fishing weir there shall be a free gap or opening in accordance with the following provisions:—

(a) the free gap shall be situate in the deepest part of the stream,

(b) the sides of the free gap shall be in line with and parallel to the direction of the stream at the weir,

(c) the bottom (of the free gap shall be level with the natural bed of the stream above and below the gap,

(d) the width of the free gap in its narrowest part shall not in any case be narrower than three feet, and, subject to that limitation, shall not be narrower than one-tenth part of the width of the stream or fifty feet whichever is the less,

(e) no existing free gap in any fishing weir shall be reduced in width or a gap of less width substituted therefor or any alteration made therein so as to reduce the flow of water through such gap.

(2) (a) Subsection (1) of this section shall not apply to any fishing weir in respect of which an order has been made under paragraph (b) of this subsection.

(b) Where the breadth of the river, where there is a chartered or patent fishing weir (being a fishing weir existing on the 28th day of July, 1863), does not exceed forty feet and it might be inexpedient to require a free gap to be made therein, the Minister may, if he thinks fit, instead thereof, direct by his order the extension of the weekly close time for a period of twenty-four hours.

(3) Where a free gap has been made in a fishing weir but is not maintained in accordance with subsection (1) of this section, the owner of the fishing weir shall be guilty of an offence under this section and shall be liable on summary conviction thereof to a fine not exceeding five pounds for each day he is in default.

108. —(1) The Minister may by order authorise the operation of a specified fishing weir belonging to the Minister or the Electricity Supply Board without a free gap, subject to such conditions as to the release upstream of a sufficient number of fish entering the weir as he thinks proper to impose for the purpose of adequately maintaining stocks of such fish, and may by order amend or revoke any order made by him under this section.

(2) Before making an order under this section, the Minister shall cause notice of his intention, containing a draft of the proposed order, to be published and circulated in the locality to be affected by the order and shall consider any objections thereto made to him during one month after the publication of the notice.

(3) For the purposes of this section any contrivance for taking or facilitating the taking of fish associated with hydro-electric works constructed by the Electricity Supply Board shall be deemed to be a fishing weir.

(4) An order under this section shall have effect notwithstanding anything to the contrary in this Act.

(5) Every order under this section shall be laid before each House of the Oireachtas as soon as may be after it is made, and if a resolution annulling the order is passed by either House within the next twenty-one days on which that House has sat after the order is laid before it, the order shall be annulled accordingly, but without prejudice to the validity of anything previously done thereunder.

(6) Notice of the making of every order under this section shall, as soon as may be, be published in the Iris Oifigiúil and in one or more newspapers circulating in the area affected by the order, and a copy of the order shall be deposited with the County Registrar for every county and the District Court Clerk of every district which, or any part of which, is affected thereby, and in every station of the Garda Síochána within the area affected thereby.

(7) The Minister may, if he thinks fit, cause a public inquiry to be held into the desirability of making a particular order under this section and for this purpose may appoint an officer of the Minister to hold such inquiry.

(8) The Minister shall cause to be given in accordance with section 322, notice of the holding of an inquiry under this section.

109. —(1) The Minister, if he thinks fit, may by order authorise the operation of a specified eel fishing weir without a free gap, subject to such conditions (if any) as the Minister thinks fit and specifies in the order.

(2) (a) The Minister may at any time by order revoke an order under subsection (1) of this section authorising the operation, subject to conditions, of an eel fishing weir without a free gap, if the occupier of such weir—

(i) is convicted of an offence under the repealed enactments or an offence under any provision of this Act, or

(ii) has failed to comply with those conditions.

(b) The following provisions shall apply in relation to the revocation under paragraph (a) of this subsection of an order made under subsection (1) of this section authorising the operation of an eel fishing weir without a free gap—

(i) the Minister shall not revoke the order unless and until he has given by post to the occupier of such weir at least one fortnight's notice in writing stating that the Minister has under his consideration the revocation of the order and stating the grounds on which the revocation is so under consideration,

(ii) the Minister shall consider any representations in relation to such revocation made to him by the occupier before the expiration of the said notice.

(3) Where an order is made under subsection (1) of this section authorising the operation of an eel fishing weir without a free gap, then, so long as the order remains in force, none of the provisions of this Act relating to free gaps in fishing weirs shall apply in respect of such weir in so far as it is used for the capture of eels only.

110. —(1) Whenever, notwithstanding any decision made by the Special Commissioners under the provisions of the Salmon Fishery (Ireland) Act, 1863, or any court of competent jurisdiction prior to the 14th day of July, 1939, the Minister is satisfied that there is not in a fishing weir a gap in accordance with section 107, the Minister may cause to be served on the occupier of such fishing weir a notice requiring such occupier to construct, in accordance with the said section 107 and within the time (not being less than one month from the service of such notice) specified in such notice, a free gap in such fishing weir.

(2) Where a notice has been served under subsection (1) of this section on the occupier of a fishing weir, such occupier may, within one month after the service of such notice, apply to the Judge of the Circuit Court within whose jurisdiction such fishing weir is situate for an order quashing such notice on the ground that there is already in such fishing weir a free gap in accordance with section 107, and thereupon the following provisions shall have effect:—

(a) such occupier shall give notice to the Minister of the application;

(b) such occupier and the Minister shall be entitled to appear on the hearing of the application and to adduce evidence;

(c) if such Judge is satisfied that there is already in such fishing weir a free gap in accordance with section 107 he shall quash such notice and direct the Minister to pay to such occupier the costs of the occupier of and incidental to the application, and such notice shall be deemed not to have been served;

(d) if such Judge is not so satisfied he shall refuse the application and direct such occupier to pay to the Minister the costs of the Minister of and incidental to the application, and may also amend such notice by extending the time specified in such notice for compliance therewith;

(e) the decision of such Judge on the application shall be final and conclusive and not appealable.

(3) Where—

(a) a notice has been served under subsection (1) of this section on the occupier of a fishing weir, and

(b) either—

(i) such occupier has not duly made, in relation to the notice, an application under subsection (2) of this section, or

(ii) such occupier has duly made, in relation to the notice, an application under the said subsection, but the application has been refused, and

(c) the occupier has not complied with the requirements of the notice,

the following provisions shall have effect:—

(I) such occupier shall be guilty of an offence under this section and shall be liable on summary conviction thereof to a fine of not less than fifty pounds and not more than one hundred pounds,

(II) the Minister may (whether proceedings have or have not been taken against such occupier under paragraph (I) of this subsection) enter on such fishing weir and any land adjoining such fishing weir and construct a free gap in such weir.

(4) Where the Minister constructs under this section a free gap in a fishing weir he shall be entitled to recover as a simple contract debt in any court of competent jurisdiction from the occupier of such fishing weir the expenses incurred by the Minister in constructing such free gap.

(5) Where any consequential damages arise out of the construction by the Minister of a free gap in a fishing weir, the occupier of such fishing weir shall be liable for such damages.

(6) This section shall not apply in respect of any fishing weir which is the subject of an order under subsection (2) of section 107.

111. —If any alteration is made in the bed of a river in such manner as to reduce the flow of water through a free gap in a fishing weir, the person making the alteration shall be guilty of an offence under this section and shall be liable on summary conviction thereof to a fine of not less than five pounds and not more than fifty pounds and a further fine of one pound a day until he restores the bed of the river to its original state.

112. —(1) If any person—

(a) uses any fishing engine in a free gap, or

(b) uses any fishing engine (not being a rod and line) within fifty yards above or below any part of a fishing weir, or

(c) places any obstruction in the free gap of a fishing weir, or

(d) uses any contrivance or does any act whereby fish may be scared, deterred or in any way prevented from freely entering and passing up and down a free gap at all periods of the year, or

(e) places any bridge, board, cloth or any other thing whatsoever in, over or across a free gap in a fishing weir, except a temporary bridge or board during the time only when the persons engaged in the fishing of the said weir are passing over the free gap,

such person shall be guilty of an offence under this section and shall be liable on summary conviction thereof to—

(i) in the case of a first offence under this section, a fine of not less than five pounds and not more than twenty pounds, and,

(ii) in the case of a second or any subsequent offence under this section a fine of not less than ten pounds and not more than fifty pounds.

(2) Where—

(a) the owner or occupier of a fishing weir is charged under subsection (1) of this section with the offence of placing an obstruction in the free gap in such fishing weir, and

(b) it is proved that such obstruction was placed in such free gap,

it shall be presumed, until the contrary is shown, that such obstruction was placed in such free gap by him.

(3) Where a person is convicted of the offence of placing an obstruction in the free gap in a fishing weir, the Minister may cause such obstruction to be removed and any expenses incurred by the Minister under this subsection shall be a debt due by such person to the Minister and may be recovered as a simple contract debt in any court of competent jurisdiction.

113. —(1) In this section the expression “salmon weir” means any weir being—

(a) a fishing weir used for taking salmon, or

(b) a fishing mill dam used for taking salmon.

(2) The following rules shall be observed in relation to the construction and use of boxes in salmon weirs—

(a) the surface of the floor of the box shall be level with the natural bed of the river,

(b) the inscales and the heck of the box shall be capable of being removed and opened up,

(c) the bars of the heck of the box shall be placed perpendicularly,

(d) the inscales and the heck of the box shall be so constructed that no bar or part of a bar is nearer to any other bar or part of a bar than two inches,

(e) the box shall not be built over or in any other manner hidden from public inspection.

(3) Where the Minister is satisfied that sea trout form the principal part of the fish caught in a salmon weir, he may, if he thinks fit, by order declare that paragraph (d) of subsection (2) of this section shall, in relation to such salmon weir, have effect as if the words “one and a quarter inches” were substituted for “two inches”.

(4) If any person uses or constructs any box in a salmon weir in contravention of subsection (2) of this section, such person shall be guilty of an offence under this section and shall be liable on summary conviction thereof to a fine not exceeding twenty pounds.

(5) Where a person is convicted of an offence under this section in relation to any box in a salmon weir, the Minister may cause the parts of the said box in respect of which the offence was committed to be removed and may recover the expenses incurred in such removal from such person as a simple contract debt in any court of competent jurisdiction.

114. —(1) In this section, the expression “guiding wall” means any spur or tail wall, leader or outrigger.

(2) (a) There shall not be attached to any fishing weir or fishing mill dam in a river any guiding wall (other than one connecting the boxes of such fishing weir or fishing mill dam with the bank of the river) of greater length than twenty feet measured from the upstream or downstream face of such fishing weir or fishing mill dam along the centre line of such guiding wall.

(b) There shall not be attached to any fishing weir any guiding wall which has the effect of narrowing up or preventing the ingress and discharge of water through or from the free gap in such fishing weir.

(c) If any fishing weir or fishing mill dam has any guiding wall in contravention of paragraph (a) of this subsection or any fishing weir has any guiding wall in contravention of paragraph (b) of this subsection, the following provisions shall apply—

(i) the occupier thereof shall be guilty of an offence under this subsection and shall be liable on summary conviction thereof to a fine not exceeding twenty pounds and also a further fine not exceeding five pounds for every day during which such guiding wall is allowed to remain;

(ii) the Minister may cause such guiding wall to be altered or removed and, if he does so, the expenses incurred by him in so doing shall be recoverable from such occupier as a simple contract debt in any court of competent jurisdiction.

(3) If the occupier of a fishing weir or fishing mill dam in a river makes such use of any island or natural obstruction in the river as secures to him the advantage he would have obtained by attaching to such fishing weir or fishing mill dam a guiding wall contravening paragraph (a) of subsection (2) of this section, he shall be guilty of an offence under this subsection and shall be liable on summary conviction thereof to a fine not exceeding twenty pounds and a further fine not exceeding five pounds for every day on which he makes use of such island or natural obstruction.

(4) If any fishing mill dam is used partly for the purpose of sustaining water for a mill or factory or for navigation, nothing contained in this section shall be construed to extend to such fishing mill dam so as to affect injuriously the necessary supply of water to such mill, factory or navigation.