Wes Ford, General Manager of Water and Marine Resources in DPIPWE, informed that they will soon provide a permit to Van Diemen Aquaculture Pty Ltd to trial growing salmon at a site in the Tamar River. He added that the permit will allow four fish cages to be placed on the eastern side of the Long Reach section of Tamar River.
The new fish farm site will run from around July 2010 to January 2012 to allow for a single year class of fish to be grown. Ford said that Van Diemen Aquaculture had applied to amend the Tamar Estuary Marine Farming Development Plan to include a new marine farming zone that encompasses the permit site.
He explained that research in response to the amendment application indicated that more information is required before a determination could be made. In this trial period an environmental impact statement will be prepare accompany the draft amendment which indicates average current flows significantly above those farmed in other areas of the State.
Van Diemen Aquaculture will run an open day at their existing fish farm site on the western side of the Long Reach section of the Tamar River, on Saturday December 5 this year, so that the public can gain an understanding of Van Diemen Aquaculture’s existing farming operations, the proposal for a new site and the permit.
