The Tasmanian salmon industry is defending its practices amid mounting concerns over dead fish and unidentified substances washing ashore near farming operations.
The Bob Brown Foundation says it has seen dead and decomposing salmon in pens on the Tasman Peninsula, Huon River and D’Entrecasteaux Channel.
Drone images captured on Tuesday evening showed a number of dead fish floating in a pen off Roaring Bay Beach in the Huon Valley.
The pen is located in an area where mysterious ‘chunks’ recently washed ashore and where salmon are currently being treated with antibiotics.
“This industry’s most powerful backers, Albanese and Rockliff, must tell the public what is going on and why,” Antarctic and Marine Campaigner Alistair Allan said.
“It is possible that something very serious, like a disease or a virus, is killing farmed salmon crammed together in these factory farm pens.”
Luke Martin, CEO of Salmon Tasmania, acknowledged the industry is facing “challenging conditions” resulting in increased mortality rates.
“Mortalities are a fact of life for every livestock farmer, on land and sea,” he said.
“And our farmers are doing everything they can to maintain the health of their salmon and produce the highest quality product for consumers.”
Martin said the published images “do not show anything the industry has not already been very upfront and open about”.
“Our farmers and scientists are the best in the world at what they do and are taking every practical and reasonable step to manage these difficult circumstances as quickly and professionally as possible,” he said.
The Environment Protection Authority has begun investigating the situation and is currently analysing samples of the mysterious substances found on the beach.
Huon Aquaculture believes the material is fish oil, which they says is “not harmful to people or pets”.
