Liberals Would Have Tasmanian Wild Fish Processed into Salmon Food

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Dr Rosalie Woodruff MP
November 27, 2024

In Parliament, Resources Minister Eric Abetz failed to explain why small pelagic fish, including sardines, should be plundered to establish a new industry to supply fish meal to Tasmanian salmon farms.

Minister Abetz referred to a 2023 IMAS report to justify his move for a new industry, which also states that for such a new fishery to be economic, it would need be marketed to make fish food pellets.

Fish for human consumption have to be supplied to markets or canneries within hours of the catch, a highly complex and costly operation.

Should the Liberals approve a small fishery for ‘human consumption’, this would pre-empt an inevitable expansion to make the economics work. It would be naïve in the extreme to believe this would not open Tasmanian waters to supertrawler-scale exploitation of these fish.

Large-scale fishing, including with supertrawlers, have decimated wild fisheries globally. They also necessarily lead to the loss of megafauna, such as whales and dolphins, in bycatch.

A sardine fishery in South Australia recently lost its MSC certifications because of its unsustainable fishing practices, and the Australian Marine Conservation Society has registered major concerns about the capacity for a Tasmanian fishery to be sustainable.

Tasmanians fought the fight against large-scale plundering of small-pelagic fish a decade ago, and Mr Abetz won’t win if he tries again.

More and more small pelagic fish, including sardines, are migrating south seeking refuge in cool waters to escape climate change. It is alarming the Minister would consider exploiting these wild fish stocks to feed salmon farms that pollute waterways and polarise communities.

The Greens are deeply concerned Minister Abetz will go to any lengths to back multinational corporations at the expense of our environment.

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