Saturday, 31 December 2016

Lice and Chemicals, Illegal Peroxide Dumping - Norway, Marine Harvest, Updated Jan 3, 2017

See the original article: https://www.nrk.no/dokumentar/xl/henlagt-fordi-alle-gjor-det-1.13218862.

Note that Are Nylund, OIE, scientist in Norway has been on the record saying he is shocked that peroxide from wellboats would be dumped at sea.

Now, a Google translate version of the 10/11/2016 article on trying to charge Marine Harvest, et al:

' MARINE HARVEST SEA LICE TREATMENT DUMPING CASE: DISMISSED BY POLICE BECAUSE EVERYBODY DOES IT

- Before, we knew where they had their fish farms, so we did not shrimp there. But we had other shrimping areas. But when they started with well boats to treat the farmed fish (with hydrogen peroxide), we lost those places as well, says shrimp fisherman.

One year after he notified the police they have dropped the case, although they say that the law really was broken at the time.

- Initially, this was in my opinion that this was an offense covered by the Pollution Control Act. But it is done openly by many players in the aquaculture industry and the appropriate authorities are aware of it. It was therefore not appropriate to apply a single corporate penalty and the matter was, for this reason, dismissed, said police lawyer Amund Sand Trøndelag Police District.

He says that shrimp fields were previously like gold mines, with more than enough resources for a large shrimp fleet to take off in the district.

Now he finds that it is becoming increasingly less shrimp in the area. Some shrimp fields are as good as gone. He puts the Blame on aquaculture and the use of chemical delousing agents.

The chemicals used for bath treatment in the aquaculture industry in Norway (and abroad) is hydrogen peroxide, azamethiphos, Deltamethrin and Cypermethrin.

Research has shown that shrimp are significantly more sensitive to the combination of these chemicals than when the drugs are given separately. Other species (non-target organisms) can be affected in several kilometers away, even as long as 24 hours after discharge.

The Norwegian Food Safety Authority (FSA) warns specifically against combination use.

Over the last 5-6 years, the use of chemicals to kill lice has exploded in Norway... In 2009, only 308 tonnes of active substance used by this drug. In 2015, consumption increased to 43,246 tons.


[Let me add that this is an increase of 14,041 % in five to sis years. This is an astronomical increase to try to kill lice. The straight forward solution is to get out of the water and set up on land, where there are no lice.]

Dead shrimp

- They do not have a discharge permit

It is the use of well boats to remove sea lice that has shrimp fisherman Larsen particularly worried in recent years... Where Larsen would trawl for shrimp in the area north of the island Leka in Nord-Trondelag...he saw a well boat circling around the area to dump the lice treatment chemicals.

The wellboat came from Marine Harvest's fish farms at Stein Fles, outside Leka. Larsen, who repeatedly had experienced similar situations elsewhere along the coast, was provoked.

Along with farming critic Roald Dahl jr. cited the Marine Harvest farm and the wellboat company Rostein AS.

- We cited them because they had no discharge permit, said shrimp fisherman.

- Wellboat processed fish for sea lice was with hydrogen peroxide, confirms CEO Aarskog from Marine Harvest.

The Director of Marine Harvest, the world's largest aquaculture company, shows that well boats dumped hydrogen peroxide over shrimp fields Larsen used.

- We and the wellboat company were reported for allegedly dumping hydrogen peroxide on an illegal place. But the case was dismissed, says CEO Aarskog.

Shrimp had lost roe

Already four years ago...in the field he usually got 4-500 kg shrimp in after five hours of trawling, after the well boat was finished he got only 20 kg of shrimp.

- Then I saw that female shrimp in the catch had lost roe. This should not happen at this time of the year, says Larsen.

He resolved to send some of the shrimp into the IMR, in the hope that they could find out what was wrong.

- Tor Inge Larsen is not the only one I've talked to. I have talked with several shrimp fishermen who are worried about the shrimp stocks along the coast, says researcher Gold Borg Søvik at IMR in Bergen.

She found out that something was not right with the shrimp that Larsen had sent her.

- In late November shrimp will carry roe. Ten of the shrimp I followed had little roe, while 34 had released all roe, says Søvik.

- If it occurs over large areas, it can have an impact on next year's crop of shrimp, the researcher ...

- I have not delivered the shrimp to the factory this year. I've just had enough to sell shrimp on the pier and bait to local fishermen. Shrimp is the favorite dish of wild fish. They will struggle when the shrimp disappear, believes Larsen.

He points out that not only is hydrogen peroxide dumped by well boats in the ocean. Also other chemicals used for delousing. Most he fears the so-called combination use; when more treatments are used simultaneously in delousing and then dumped into the sea.'


                                                *********************

So, peroxide is safe is it, DFO? Why not use cypermethrin, too? Oh, you say, that Cooke Aquaculture was fined half a million dollars for using that for two years... before you caught up with them. Hmm. Why not just use cyanide?

Please excuse me for my transgression in this Trump era. On the other hand, cyanide is cheap.

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