In December 2010 Inland Fisheries Ireland launched its national 24 Hour Confidential Phone Line: 0818 34 74 24 or for easier recall 0818 FISH 24. The hotline simplifies the reporting of incidences of illegal fishing, water pollution and invasive species. The public can call IFI any time they witness illegal fishing or discover a water pollution event. Receiving timely information is critical to apprehending those responsible for damaging fish stocks or fish habitat. The public’s help is also being sought to prevent the spread of invasive species, which can cause millions of euros of damage to the aquatic environment.
Last year 478 calls were made to IFI’s 24hr hotline. 220 of these calls were to report suspected illegal fishing and a further 133 to report incidences of pollution. In 7 instances calls were made to alert staff to the presences of possible invasive species.
Sincere thanks go to all those anglers and members of the public who took the time to call 0818 34 74 24.
We encourage anglers to remain vigilant and to continue to ring the Hotline 0818 34 74 24 with any illegal fishing reports, pollution reports or sightings of invasive species.
