Wild Fish Threatened by 75,000 Escapees

Yesterday it emerged that 75,000 farmed salmon escaped into Loch Linne following a visit from Storm Amy, who ripped open the net of Norwegian owned Mowi’s salmon cage. A spokesperson told The National that "Initial investigations indicate that the intense weather conditions caused mooring anchors to drag, and this brought the pen net into contact with a flotation pipe subsequently causing a tear.”

Prior to this being made public it was made know that Mowi had another farm in Norway that had also seen 75,000 salmon escape following Storm Amy.

It’s another example of the arrogance of the salmon farming industry, thinking they are invincible from the impacts of nature doing what nature does.

While we may wish all the best to the salmon that escaped a horrid life swimming in circles, subject to the long suffering of parasitic infections and disease until slaughter do they part, the reality is that these escaped salmon, which were grown in trays before being transferred to hatcheries, pose a massive threat to wild populations.

No other farming industry compares to the negative impact of salmon farming. When’s the last time you heard of farmed cows escaping and threatening wild cow populations? Or chicken escapes mingling with wild bird flocks? Any escapees from land based farms are caught and returned to their fate (with the odd one being spared to a sanctuary).

The Scottish Government needs to stop pretending the salmon farming industry can outmanoeuvre mother nature. If it’s not warming water temperatures, algal blooms or parasite loads, they can always count on storms.