Title : King Island surfers determined to protect their waves from salmon farms
link : King Island surfers determined to protect their waves from salmon farms
King Island surfers determined to protect their waves from salmon farms
Opposition to a controversial salmon farm on King Island has escalated with more than 100 people taking part in a protest to protect a world-class surf break.
Key points:
- Protesters don't want salmon producer Tassal to establish a farm near the Martha Lavinia surf break
- King Island community group spokesman Charlie Stubbs said they will protest for as long as they need to
- Mr Stubbs said the Martha Lavinia has been recognised as "an endangered wave"
A group of King Island residents do not want salmon producer Tassal to expand its operations off the island.
They fear establishing a salmon farm near world -famous surf break Martha Lavinia would damage the environment.
About 30 of the protesters paddled out on surfboards to form a circle, roughly the size of a salmon pen, in Currie Harbour to highlight their concerns.
Charlie Stubbs, from the community group Keep King Island Fish Farm Free, said they have received a lot of support.
"We've got a long fight on our hands as we know and it could be two to three years before any fish farm company establishes fish farms off our coastal waters, but we want to make sure that our protest remains visible," he said.
"We want to show them they they don't have any social license to come and invade our waters.
"We're not giving up this fight, we are determined to protect what we value.
"The main thrust of our campaign, I suppose, is saying we're not going away, we will continue to object and we will continue to protect [it] as long as it takes."
The focus of the protest was on the protection of the Martha Lavinia surf break.
"That's an endangered wave, it's been recognised as an endangered wave," Mr Stubbs said.
Tasmania's biggest salmon producer, Tassal, is looking into the feasibility of expanding its operations off the east coast after being granted a permit two years ago.
Last year nine King Island businesses started a boycott of Tasmanian farmed salmon as a symbolic protest against the fish farm plans.
Tassal's possible move to the island has been welcomed by many, however opponents say there are significant environmental concerns.
High-profile surfers have also added their voice to the call to keep King Island fish farm free.
Last year former champion surfers Tom Carroll and Barton Lynch went public with their concerns about the effect salmon farming would have on Martha Lavinia Beach, which is adjacent to the exploration permit area on King Island's east coast.
In a statement Tassal said it was continuing to evaluate research undertaken at King Island to determine if there is suitability for salmon farming.
"Evaluation of environmental data continues. It is critical to understand that it is early days in the process, and can take many months to years to determine — which we have communicated from the outset," the statement said.
"Through the process, Tassal has spoken with community groups and offered members of the public to travel to Hobart to tour its operations, which have included its land based hatchery/nursery, marine farms and processing facilities — as well as its world first remote feed centre to understand the breadth of innovation and technology involved."
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