“Can someone explain a closed containment system to …

Comment posted FoI by Salmon and Trout Association shows reality of failure on sea lice control in salmon farms by John Sinclair.

“Can someone explain a closed containment system to me? All seems a bit too simple?”
I read some were that this system is used in Canada, I think its like having big swiming pools all closed in, they can be located on land. I will try and find that link. This guy blogs a lot on those issues

http://www.robedwards.com/fish_farming/

http://www.robedwards.com/2006/12/wild_salmon_at_.html

John Sinclair also commented

  • Agency Board Meeting
    29 May 2012
    Board Report Number:
    SEPA 19/12
    Chairman report
    “SEPA 19/12
    2.5
    Dawnfresh Seafoods trout farms, Loch Awe and Loch Etive
    Jim Frame, West Highlands & Argyll Operations unit manager, and I visited the
    Dawnfresh Seafoods trout farms at Loch Awe and Loch Etive on 2 May. Alastair
    Salvesen, chairman and major owner of the company, hosted this visit.
    I found this visit both interesting and useful as Jim Frame flagged these sites as being
    much improved and now demonstrating good practice in this sector. Alastair
    Salvesen explained the benefits of recent investments in production facilities and
    outlined his future vision. SEPA’s Lochgilphead team will continue to work with
    Dawnfresh Seafoods to support good environmental performance.
    .”
    Do not think SEPA’s chair person has a problem with methods used in fish farming.
  • Agency Board Meeting
    15 February 2011
    Board Report Number:
    SEPA 05/11

    “Alleged illegal use of chemicals to treat sea lice on a Shetland salmon farm
    (update)
    SEPA is working closely with Marine Scotland to identify who is best placed to lead
    on enforcement action, given the alleged activity potentially interfaces both regulatory
    agencies’ remits. This co-operation will progress the good working relationship
    already developed between Marine Scotland and SEPA.”

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7 Responses to “Can someone explain a closed containment system to …

  1. Agency Board Meeting
    15 February 2011
    Board Report Number:
    SEPA 05/11

    “Alleged illegal use of chemicals to treat sea lice on a Shetland salmon farm
    (update)
    SEPA is working closely with Marine Scotland to identify who is best placed to lead
    on enforcement action, given the alleged activity potentially interfaces both regulatory
    agencies’ remits. This co-operation will progress the good working relationship
    already developed between Marine Scotland and SEPA.”

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 0 Thumb down 0

  2. “only if:

    •those existing fish-farms in sensitive locations are relocated away from the wild salmonid rivers
    •and, ultimately, the industry moves into closed containment systems.”

    Where exactly would the STA have them relocate? Lets have some real geographical examples please?

    Can someone explain a closed containment system to me? All seems a bit too simple?

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 0 Thumb down 0

    • As far as we understand it, relocation should be a rolling feature of fish farming – regularly moving the cages to different locations to prevent the build up of the sort of faecal and chemical wastes under discussion.
      Again, as far as we understand it, there are – or were – requirements placed upon fish farms in planning permissions, for specific periodic relocations. These requirements were simply ignored – to which neglect the Scottish Environmental Protection Agency (SEPA) turned a blind eye.

      Like or Dislike: Thumb up 0 Thumb down 0

  3. In theory there is nothing technical to prevent the use of close circuit systems or pump through systems for growing salmon. Pump ashore systems are nothing new and I once visited Harbor Branch in the US which had its whole, large aquaculture site working on a water system where the discharges from the site were actually higher in quality than the water extracted from the river it was sat on.

    It would be a relatively simple matter from a technical viewpoint to have an enclosed cage (effectively a large tank) floating in the sea with water being pumped into the tank. As the water is pumped in, it is filtered to remove pathogens and parasites (technically you could have filters so fine they will remove bacteria but more likely a UV system would be used to sterilise the water Salmon and bacterial action on any uneaten food mean that oxygen demand will be high in the tank so either the water needs to be pumped through very rapidly or the water needs to be additionally oxygenated water out must equal water in so the water has to be drained out through a sewage system that can remove solids (at least) from the waste water.

    You can have various refinements of this sort of system so you could, say, remove nitrates from the waste water.

    The problem is, of course, cost. Pumping water is expensive, oxygenating water (in enclosed systems with high fish densities) is expensive, filtration of water to remove waste products is expensive At a guess, the cost of using systems that would entail minimal impact on the environment would be at least 5x the cost of using open cage systems, even allowing for the improvements in fish health that should arise.

    You can see why the industry might not be too keen to embark on a switch to pump through systems. While the industry is not held financially responsible for the economic costs of the difficult to quantify impacts then don’t expect much in the way of innovation in regard to pump through or recirc systems.

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 0 Thumb down 0

  4. Agency Board Meeting
    29 May 2012
    Board Report Number:
    SEPA 19/12
    Chairman report
    “SEPA 19/12
    2.5
    Dawnfresh Seafoods trout farms, Loch Awe and Loch Etive
    Jim Frame, West Highlands & Argyll Operations unit manager, and I visited the
    Dawnfresh Seafoods trout farms at Loch Awe and Loch Etive on 2 May. Alastair
    Salvesen, chairman and major owner of the company, hosted this visit.
    I found this visit both interesting and useful as Jim Frame flagged these sites as being
    much improved and now demonstrating good practice in this sector. Alastair
    Salvesen explained the benefits of recent investments in production facilities and
    outlined his future vision. SEPA’s Lochgilphead team will continue to work with
    Dawnfresh Seafoods to support good environmental performance.
    .”
    Do not think SEPA’s chair person has a problem with methods used in fish farming.

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 0 Thumb down 0


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