Prime Time - Galway Salmon Farm

Read this perhaps. I would like to help you with your ignorance. http://www.google.ie/url?sa=t&source=we ... -403gd3d5A

Am I dreaming or was there not a dramatic collapse ( which doesn't have to be zero that would be an extinction!) in sea trout numbers along most of the west and perhaps south west coast in areas near farms during this period that coincided with the arrival of the farms? Was Currane one of the lakes that was ruined? Perhaps my memory is going. I know this doesn't count for much as I can't remember the chap's name but I attended a lecture a few years back by a lecturer in aquaculture in the UK. When I mentioned the Irish sea trout collapse of the 80's he didn't deny the link to fish farming but just said that things have improved in the industry since those days.

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Sea lice infestation as a source of marine mortality of outwardly migrating Atlantic salmon smolts has been investigated by treating groups of ranched salmon, prior to release, with a prophylactic sea lice treatment conferring protection from sea lice infestation. A number of studies have been carried out in Ireland using both established ranched populations and groups of hatchery reared fish imprinted for 5–8 weeks in the sites of experimental releases. In this study, data on 352 142 migrating salmon from twenty-eight releases, at eight locations along Ireland's South and West coasts covering a 9-year period (2001 to 2009) are reviewed. Both published and new data are presented including a previously unpublished time series. The results of a meta-analysis of the combined data suggest that while sea lice-induced mortality on outwardly migrating smolts can be significant, it is a minor and irregular component of marine mortality in the stocks studied and is unlikely to be a significant factor influencing conservation status of salmon stocks. "quote from this website http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1 ... 8B1.d02t04"

The negative impact of sea-lice, produced in huge numbers by fish-farms, on wild salmonids (salmon and sea-trout) is widely accepted by fisheries scientists including the Scottish Government's own Marine Scotland Science. In Ireland, the Government of Ireland's agency, Inland Fisheries Ireland, is crystal-clear as to where the problem lies:

"the presence of salmon farms has been shown to significantly increase the level of sea lice infestation in sea trout in Ireland, Scotland and Norway. These lice infestations have been shown to follow the development of marine salmon aquaculture....

Studies from Ireland, Scotland and Norway have shown that in bays where salmon farming takes place the vast majority of sea lice originate from salmon farms......"

"...Sea lice proliferate on the hundreds of thousands of farmed fish per fish-farm and the adult females release vast numbers of juvenile sea lice into the surrounding sea lochs, where wild sea-trout and salmon smolts (juvenile fish, only a few centimetres in length) are emigrating to sea for the first time. While a few sea-lice on a large adult fish are not a problem, even a light infestation on fragile juvenile smolts will be fatal."

"...What the list highlights is that, unless weekly farm-specific sea-lice count data is published by the fish farms, the public cannot know:

- when exactly were sea-lice numbers on each salmon farm too high

- whether this occurred at the time of the wild smolt run and could have harmed wild fish

- by how much the salmon-farms listed in Annex A breached Code of Practice thresholds

- for how long (days or weeks or even months) were lice levels too high

- whether and how lice levels fluctuated through the 2-year farmed fish growing cycle

- whether the lice were dealt with quickly or not by the fish-farmers concerned

- what the implications might be for wild fish conservation and management."

Currently, although the large fish farm companies are required to collect and record weekly sea-lice count data at each of their farms (including the number of adult female lice found per farmed fish, which is a surrogate measure for the production of juvenile lice) they are not required by law to publish this data, nor submit it to the Fish Health Inspectorate (FHI).

source: http://www.fishnewseu.com/latest-news/s ... omain.html

It is more than a proven fact that salmon farms always had and will have negative impacts on the surrounding environment and the indigenous aquatic population if they are allowed to proceed with methods tolerated up to date! Everyone still in denial of the obvious data and findings either has vested interests or is IMHO not fit to partake in a serious discussion on this matter!

In is in everybody's interest to keep the lice levels low, just because the farms don't publish the data doesn't mean that they are not trying furiously to keep them to a minimal.

In is in everybody's interest to keep the lice levels low, just because the farms don't publish the data doesn't mean that they are not trying furiously to keep them to a minimal.

An interesting article although the topic of discussion centred upon the decline of sea trout catches in the Ballynahinch system and negative effects of sea trout infestation arising from the emergence of salmon farms did it not?

I have the opinion that the decrease is due to other factors in this area and that the farms are being blamed because its the easiest target.

I have the opinion that the decrease is due to other factors in this area and that the farms are being blamed because its the easiest target.

In otherwords you have chosen to disregard the article that I have referenced above as it suits your needs. Thank you for your 'clarification' on this issue.

I am not disregarding it, I feel its obvious that the publishers of the article would have that view, What else where they going to say? Every fisheries will be different and every fish farm is also different . All I am saying through this whole debate is that it is obvious that fish farms aren't the sole cause for the decline of the catches and that everyone is singling them out as the main problem.

In is in everybody's interest to keep the lice levels low, just because the farms don't publish the data doesn't mean that they are not trying furiously to keep them to a minimal.

In everybody's interest? Really? I suggest it is time to remove the pink coloured shades and face reality!

Marine Harvest, one of the world's largest fish-farming companies, is under investigation after its salmon farms polluted a Scottish loch with toxic pesticide residues hundreds of times above environmental limits.

Sampling tests around salmon cages on Loch Shell in the Outer Hebrides by the Scottish Environment Protection Agency (Sepa) found that levels of Teflubenzuron, used to kill sea lice parasites which affect hundreds of thousands of caged fish each year, were up to 450 times higher than recommended levels.

Sepa's tests, carried out in 2012, found that Teflubenzuron levels were well above the recommended limits at 20 of the 21 sediment sampling sites on the loch, suggesting long-term problems with its treatment regime there.

There were Teflubenzuron samples showing readings 150, 200 and 250 times above the 2 microgram per kilogramme limit, at least 100m from the edge of the salmon cages. Residue levels for two other anti-sea lice chemicals, Emamectin and Deltamethrin, were also breaching limits on Loch Shell, which on the east coast of Lewis south of Stornoway.

Sepa said its tests in several areas heavily used for fish farming, including Shetland, Orkney, Loch Fyne and Firth of Lorne in Argyll, and sites in Wester Ross, found chemical levels breaching its recommended limits at 72 sampling sites, nearly a tenth of the 792 sites it tested.

The pesticides are designed to attack the nervous systems and outer shells of the sea lice. But they are also lethal or toxic to other marine species, chiefly prawns and lobsters, and other crustaceans, but also other bird, fish and mammal species.

Lang Banks, director of WWF Scotland, said: "The fact that the limits have been breached so spectacularly at some locations is deeply worrying and suggests something has gone badly wrong. It's simply unacceptable that entire lochs be put at risk in this way. It also begins to raise questions over the industries approach to tackling sea lice problems."

Don Staniford, the anti-fish farming campaigner who has investigated Sepa's monitoring data, tabling a series of detailed Freedom of Information requests, was more blunt. He said salmon farming was a "malignant cancer".

source: http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2 ... ttish-loch

In is in everybody's interest to keep the lice levels low, just because the farms don't publish the data doesn't mean that they are not trying furiously to keep them to a minimal.

An interesting article although the topic of discussion centred upon the decline of sea trout catches in the Ballynahinch system and negative effects of sea trout infestation arising from the emergence of salmon farms did it not?

I am not denying the fact that some farms use chemicals in the wrong way but we have talk about the farms in connemara.

..it is obvious that fish farms aren't the sole cause for the decline of the catches and that everyone is singling them out as the main problem.

One problem at a time.

Monofil drift nets were a large problem when driftnetters were fishing curtains of death - it took a long and ardous campaign to get them banned, and that only happened when Irish angling organisations mobilised help from abroad, with the threat of a visiting angler boycott hitting tourism coupled with a complaint by foreign anglers to Europe that the Irish Govt were actively breaching the European Habitats Directive threatening to hit the Govt with daily accumulative fines.

But driftnetting was banned, and good riddance to it too. Next up is fish farms at sea. Incidently, most of the people I chat to aren't against fish farms per se, if they're relocated onshore and proper waste and water treatments are adhered to. Much like any other livestock farmers have to comply with day in, day out really. Perhaps you'd care to make a case as to why the rules and regulations that those farmers work under shouldn't apply to fish farmers?

Once the sea lice problem is fixed, attention can then turn to other problems.

..it is obvious that fish farms aren't the sole cause for the decline of the catches and that everyone is singling them out as the main problem.

One problem at a time.

Monofil drift nets were a large problem when driftnetters were fishing curtains of death - it took a long and ardous campaign to get them banned, and that only happened when Irish angling organisations mobilised help from abroad, with the threat of a visiting angler boycott hitting tourism coupled with a complaint by foreign anglers to Europe that the Irish Govt were actively breaching the European Habitats Directive threatening to hit the Govt with daily accumulative fines.

But driftnetting was banned, and good riddance to it too. Next up is fish farms at sea. Incidently, most of the people I chat to aren't against fish farms per se, if they're relocated onshore and proper waste and water treatments are adhered to. Much like any other livestock farmers have to comply with day in, day out really. Perhaps you'd care to make a case as to why the rules and regulations that those farmers work under shouldn't apply to fish farmers?

land farmers also use chemicals to treat there land , these chemicals run into lakes and rivers and contaminate drinking water. I haven't seen any bad results of the chemicals the local farm uses.

Yes sea lice is just one aspect of the debate pesticide use to combat the lice is another. I saw a fascinating documentary about 4 years ago about a major Scandinavian aquaculture giant( prob Marine Harvest but I'm not sure). The damage they did in Chile would make your blood boil. As you may know Chile has developed into a fish farm mecca due to its varied climate and its consequent ability to farm different species. The documentary asserted that the company were completely reckless in Chile as the govt turned a blind eye to minor matters such as the environmental impact of industrial fish farming. Can anyone here remember the name of the doc as it's well worth a look? I tried to find it on Google. There is of course plenty of other stuff online. Just some examples re Marine Harvest's use of pesticides and some videos on Salmon farming in Canada are below. I haven't watched these videos but they might be worth a look.

Might also make a change from scientific papers for a while .


http://www.finanznachrichten.de/nachric ... ue-020.htm

http://www.salmonwars.com/

http://www.documentarystream.com/salmon ... ld-salmon/

If you look into every type of intensive farming you will always find a company who is driven by profit and doesn't care about the effects of its work. We must however look at the the great success stories where farms are present in areas of great fishing and clean waters like many places in Ireland.

Where's that then?

bertraghboy bay, where I live

Wouldn't call that clean waters, what with a filthy fish farm causing pollution. Sea trout fishing isn't so great there either, I hear.

Sea trout fishing fishing wasnt going great before the farm was there, Its the cleanest waters around , swim and sail in it all summer.

bertraghboy bay, where I live

google Bertraghboy Bay fish farm https://www.google.ie/search?q=Bertragh ... 24&bih=603
and have a good read through some of the pages that come up and show me a page that has something good to say about the fish farm on it