Petition Grows as Sea Lice Decimate Bertraghboy Bay
IRELAND - After the reintroduction of salmon farming to Bertraghboy Bay at Ballynahinch in Connemara, a strongly worded message been sent to the Minister for Agriculture, Brendan Smith, urging immediate steps to outlaw salmon-farming in the estuary.
According to Derek Evansangling, writing for the IrishTimes, an on-line petition which, at time of going to press, has reached 1,376 signatures.
“Until the late 1980s the Ballynahinch system in Connemara was regarded as the best sea-trout fishery in Ireland, with up to 5,500 sea-trout and 500 salmon caught annually. The introduction of salmon-farming in the estuary at Ballynahinch in 1988 destroyed the stocks of salmon and sea-trout," said the petition.
“Annual sea-trout rod catches collapsed from 5,500 to 100 while the salmon catch fell from 500 to 50. The sea-lice emanating from these salmon farms have been proven to be the cause of this utter decimation of the wild stock of salmonids.
