270 TONS of salmon are dead due to storms in Tasmania, Australia |

Hundreds of tonnes of farmed salmon worth millions of dollars have been killed by storm surges on Tasmania’s west coast.

It is believed to be the state’s biggest single fish kill and has raised questions about the industry’s plans for expansion in Macquarie Harbour.

The Greens are calling for greater scrutiny of the aquaculture industry after confirmation that 270 tonnes of salmon perished at Petuna’s operation.

The company has attributed the deaths to a big storm earlier this month which it said was the most severe of its kind in almost a decade.

An influx of seawater into the harbour caused a rapid change in oxygen levels and the fish suffocated in their pens.

After the incident, which Petuna described as minor stock loss, the fish were buried at a nearby landfill site.

In a statement it said fish welfare was paramount and it had a record of low stocking densities.

The incident has been seized upon by critics of the salmon industry’s plans to double in size by 2030.

Greens senator Peter Whish-Wilson wants more independent research into the environmental impacts of the industry.

“This is devastating for the fish. It’s devastating for the company itself that’s potentially going to lose millions of dollars worth of fish,” he said.

“And it really raises significant questions about the state of the environment in Macquarie Harbour.”

Courtesy of abc.net.au

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