© Mowi
It is currently estimated that up to 27,000 salmon escaped from Mowi Norway's Storvika site due to a mooring fire early this week, characterised by the company as "a serious and very regrettable situation," according to the Guardian.
Whilst in ordinary circumstances, the recapture of escaped farmed fish is limited to within a 500-metre circumference, major escape events often prompt the government's Fisheries Directorate to waive this rule, as occurred in this instance.
"Based on the fact that this could be a major escape, Mowi has received a verbal order from the directorate to conduct recapture fishing outside the 500-meter zone,” said Fisheries Directorate communications director Anette Aase, as reported by Fishfarming Expert.
The escape of farmed salmon into wild runs can have serious impacts on native salmon populations, with interbreeding potentially lowering the fitness of the wild fish. In the case that anglers capture escaped salmon, these can be delivered to fish reception centres in various municipalities in exchange for the 500 NOK bounty.
In addition to the recapture efforts, Mowi Norway is prioritising repairs at the site to minimise further incident, although these efforts have been hampered by challenging weather conditions, according to a Mowi spokesperson.
