Salmon industry apologises for ‘unprecedented’ mortality event, pledges changes
Salmon Tasmania has pleaded for “understanding and support” in the wake of an unprecedented mass mortality event, with the peak industry body promising to “make changes for the future”.
More than 5,500 tonnes of dead fish were dumped at waste facilities in Tasmania last month, according to the Environment Protection Authority (EPA).
That equates to roughly 6 per cent of the industry’s annual production.
Community members have also found chunks of salmon and fatty globules washed up on southern Tasmanian beaches over the past few weeks.
In a statement on Friday, Salmon Tasmania chief executive Luke Martin said the industry was “dealing with an unprecedented, first-of-its-size, seasonal mortality event in the south-east”.
Chunks of salmon fat washed up on the Verona Sands foreshore, south of Hobart, prompting a clean-up team from salmon producer Huon Aquaculture. (Supplied: Bob Brown Foundation)
Industry to ‘review’ and ‘make changes’
“It’s been a concerning time for our surrounding communities, and we apologise for the impact and want to assure everyone that we are doing everything to fix this and make changes for the future,” he said.
“To say it’s been devastating and exhausting for our farmers and scientists is an understatement.
“Our industry prides itself on raising healthy fish, but just like all animals and primary producers, salmon are not immune to the vagaries of our natural environment.”
The EPA said the state’s chief veterinary officer had advised that the deaths were “largely due to an endemic bacterium”, with testing detecting the “bacterium known as Piscirickettsia salmonis (P. salmonis)”.
The dead fish come from pens in the D’Entrecasteaux Channel, in south-eastern Tasmania, owned by Huon Aquaculture and Tassal.
“The reality is two factors beyond anyone’s control combined to create this unprecedented event: summer conditions, and a new strain of the microbe,” Mr Martin said.
Salmon Tasmania’s Luke Martin says the industry takes “very seriously” its responsibility and requirement to farm sustainably. (ABC News: Luke Bowden)
“This is still an evolving event, but we will of course be reviewing every element and will make changes in the future,”
he said.
“Our industry takes very seriously its responsibility and regulated requirement to farm in Tasmania’s waters sustainably.”
Live salmon dumping ‘not normal’, industry says
Speaking to the ABC’s Radio National Hour last week, Mr Martin admitted “it was not good enough”.
The Environment Protection Authority says more than 5,500 tonnes of dead fish were dumped at waste facilities last month. (Supplied: Bob Brown Foundation)
“What’s happened there [at Verona Sands Beach] is effectively fish oil, and we’re trying to work out how it’s occurred, but the likelihood is it’s the transporting of the fish from the pens.
“As obviously they succumb or we have a mortality, it’s about extracting them as quickly as we can from the pens,” he said.
“Somehow, this oil has effectively got out and crystallised on the beaches, which is terrible. It’s the first time we’ve got any evidence of it happening in Tasmania.”
Mr Martin also addressed concerns about a video of live salmon from Huon Aquaculture being sealed inside tubs and left to suffocate.
Loading…
“We acknowledge there is footage of an incident that does not represent normal operations procedures, or the animal welfare standards expected of the industry,” he said.
“The company involved is taking the matter extremely seriously and an investigation is underway.“
MP appalled at handling of issue
Federal independent MP Andrew Wilkie said he was appalled at what he said was the EPA’s inability to get a handle on the situation and described the state government’s approach as “hands-off”.
Loading…
“Those of us who speak up and were critical of the industry were accused of trying to shut the industry down,” Mr Wilkie said.
“I’m not trying to shut anything down. I actually want the industry to thrive and realise its potential, and the jobs in the industry to be safeguarded,” Mr Wilkie said.
“The industry is not going to be on a sustainable footing when we have mass die-offs, we have unprecedented use of antibiotics, we have this terrible secrecy around the industry where we can’t find out what’s going on.
“We have an EPA that is under-resourced and has limited legislative powers and a state government, and a state opposition, I would add, that are running a protection racket for these aquaculture industries.
Deputy Premier Guy Barnett said the salmon industry was “very important” and the government expected transparency from it. (Supplied: Bob Brown Foundation)
“These industries, if they’re not careful, they’ll go the way of other Tasmanian industries. They’ll flounder and they’ll diminish and it’ll be their fault.“
Mr Wilkie said putting the industry on a sustainable footing meant not having such a concentration of pens, moving them into shallower waters and the eventual closing of onshore farming.
“That’s what the future looks like,” he said.
Deputy Premier Guy Barnett said the government expected “openness and transparency” from the industry.
“It’s a very important industry,” he said.
“We’ve backed it in year, in year out without fail, and they employ thousands of people all around Tasmania, but there needs to be openness and transparency from all of our salmon companies.”
It follows comments from Premier Jeremy Rockliff earlier this week that the industry was “on notice”.
Mr Barnett also reiterated that there was no risk to the health of Tasmanians, adding that the EPA’s investigation was “well underway”.
Loading…
