Rosalie Woodruff MP | Greens' Marine Environment spokesperson
The Greens are relieved wastewater from Tassal’s operations in Macquarie Harbour will not be dumped back into that waterway. The reason Tassal is not allowed to dump their extra fish waste back into the Harbour is because it has already overstocked their fish pens and caused substantial damage to the marine environment.
North Western Tasmanians need assurance there will be no impact on the Bass Strait marine environment around TasWater’s Devonport facility. It’s clear there is a problem with the levels of nutrients and antibiotics in the liquid fish waste Tassal is collecting from their intensive farming.
We expect to see the EPA and TasWater testing Tassal’s wastewater for nutrient and antibiotic content and making the results public. Tasmanians should know exactly what is being put back into our common marine environment and what impact it will have.
This arrangement has only come to pass because under the Liberals’ watch Tassal was permitted to exceed the salmon stocking density cap in Macquarie Harbour, and to use an untried and untested waste collection mechanism beneath their pens.
This problem of waste disposal was created by the Liberal Government, who allowed Tassal to breach their salmon stocking levels in the Harbour even when no oxygen levels were recorded in the lower waters.