Industrial salmon feedlots are destroying the marine and freshwater ecosystems of Tasmania.
Industrial salmon feedlots are plagued by diseases exacerbated by stocking-density and Tasmania’s rapidly-warming waters— four times faster than the global average.
Violent “bathing” treatments for diseases (see “Welfare”) results in huge quantities of polluted waters being dumped into sensitive coastal waters.
In just 20 years, 31.4 tonnes of antibiotics have been used in public waterways to treat disease outbreaks in salmon cages. In one case alone, 675kg of oxytetracycline was used without public warning near popular bathing spots.
Untreated faeces & uneaten food contribute to massive build-ups of dangerous nutrient levels that cause algal blooms, damaging reef systems and seagrass beds and smothering beaches.
Summer algal blooms are also found below hatcheries on rivers, as untreated effluent and chemicals are released as waste water. The hatcheries are a major reason for a $250 million upgrade to a Hobart drinking water treatment plant.
