Αρχική Ανάπτυξη ΥδατοκαλλιεργειώνΑΡΘΡΟ ΠΡΩΤΟΣχόλιο του χρήστη KOLPOS ARGOSTOLIOU SOS | 20 Μαΐου 2011, 17:36
  • Σχόλιο του χρήστη 'KOLPOS ARGOSTOLIOU SOS' | 20 Μαΐου 2011, 17:36

    Dear Minister, Many will come forward presenting their diplomas as evidence that there is nothing wrong with operating fish farms close to recognised beaches and closed bays. They will even say that its compatible with Tourism. They will argue that those opposing fish farming, in environmentally sensitive areas, are out on a witch hunt. This is absolutely not true and the reason for all these people to request your support is because the environment in these specific areas is suffering. It should suffer no more. Please do not allow this practice to continue. Please do not accept generalised statements and accept the proposal of the University of Athens for an immediate study to be conducted on the Bay of Argostoli. Your government is doing all it can to change Greece and old habits that led to the decline of all sectors of the economy. Do not allow old habits to continue in this industry. Lets finally ask those in Greece who give the industry a bad name to move their farms to sustainable areas according to international studies and practices. As information I copy below extracts from WWF.org and PETA.Org WWF.org Aquaculture problems: Pollution While many aquaculture systems are closed with no harmful output, open net cage fish farms and land-based fish farms can discharge significant amounts of wastewater containing nutrients, chemicals, and pharmaceuticals that impact on the surrounding environment. For example, the nutrients in unused fish feed and fish faeces can cause local algal blooms, or eutrophication. These blooms lead to reduced oxygen in the water, which in turn can lead to the production of ammonia, methane, and hydrogen sulphide, which are toxic to many aquatic species. Reduced oxygen can also directly kill marine life. In addition, a wide range of chemicals is currently used in the aquaculture industry, mainly pharmaceuticals such as antibiotics and anti-fouling agents such as copper. Some of these chemicals are toxic to molluscs and crustaceans, and little is known about their broader ecological implications. In some areas, such as Southeast Asia and South America, frequent use of medications has led to increased resistance of the target pathogen to treatment. PETA.org The United Nations' Food and Agriculture Organization reports that the aquaculture industry is growing three times faster than land-based animal agriculture, and aquafarms will surely become even more prevalent as our natural fisheries become exhausted. On aquafarms, high-volume systems control food, light (on indoor farms), and growth stimulation. Drugs and genetic engineering are used to accelerate growth and change reproductive behaviors. Injuries and Death In intensively crowded aquafarms, small fish are bullied and killed by larger fish, so fish are continually sorted to make sure that faster-growing individuals are moved to the appropriate size grouping. At each sorting, they are netted or pumped out of their tanks and dumped onto a series of bars and grates with varying space gaps to divide them by size and redistribute them into different netted cages or tanks; small fish slip through the small grates while larger fish fall through the larger gaps. This practice, called "grading," is very stressful and results in painful scrapes and a loss of protective scales, leaving the animals vulnerable to disease. High mortality rates, disease, and parasite infestations are common. Deformities and stress-related injuries are also a regular occurrence; on some farms, as many as 40 percent of the fish are blind—a problem that is not addressed because blind fish net the same profit for farmers. Crowding Because they are designed to navigate vast oceans and use all their senses to do so, many fish go insane from the cramped conditions and lack of space on fish farms. The tight enclosures inhibit their ability to navigate properly and cause them to knock against each other and the sides of the enclosures. This jostling causes sores and damage to their fins. To increase profits, fish farmers cram as many fish as possible into the smallest spaces possible. Salmon farms are so crowded—with as many as 50,000 individuals in each enclosure—that a 2.5-foot fish spends his or her entire life in a space the size of a bathtub. Trout farms are even more crowded, with as many as 27 full-grown fish in a bathtub-sized space. Fish Feed Many species of farmed fish are carnivorous, which means that fish must be caught from our already-exhausted oceans to feed the fish on aquafarms. It can take more than 5 pounds of fish from the ocean to produce just 1 pound of farmed salmon or sea bass. Aquafarmers have even begun to feed fish oil and fish meal to fish who naturally eat only plants in an effort to make them grow faster. What's more, fish farmers lace fish feed with powerful chemicals and antibiotics to help fish survive the deadly diseases caused by the crowding and filth. It's likely that these fish pellets are the cause of the higher PCB and dioxin contamination levels found in farmed fish, which are seven times higher than the already-dangerous levels found in their wild counterparts. Contaminant Stew Contaminants from ocean-based aquafarms (fish excrement, uneaten chemical-laden food, and swarms of parasites) spread to the surrounding ocean, and the rampant disease inside the cages is passed on to ocean fish in the area, in some cases increasing the incidence of sea lice a thousandfold. Yours sincerely, Karim Abraheem