The SGA Fishing group is fully supportive of rural employment and benefits to local communities. However, it feels the Scottish Government is not doing enough to protect wild salmon and sea trout from the negative impacts from fish farming operations.
A Spokesman for the new SGA Fishing Group said: “While the SGA is fully supportive of job creation and economic benefits in rural communities, our members have real concerns about the impact of fish farming on Scotland’s wild salmon and sea trout stocks.
“Some aquaculture operations on the west have been responsible for sea lice infestation levels three times the industry’s own safe limits, which cannot be sustainable, and the industry is highly reliant on chemicals which affect the health of wild fish.
“We feel more needs to be done by Scottish government to ensure the marine environment and wild fish are protected against the well documented negative impacts of fish farming.”
