Fish farm company needs reality check

Sir, Your article headed ‘3,000 sign Sound of Jura fish farm petition’ ( The Oban

Times, May 11) ended with Kames Fish Farming’s reaction to the many and substantial grounds of objection to its proposal.

It is much to be hoped that Kames will recognise the weight of opposition and adopt the approach of one of its competitors, Marine Harvest Ltd, Scotland’s largest producer of farmed salmon, which now recognises that there are ‘sensitive sites’ and, as reported on BBC Countryfile, says that it is ‘open to looking at relocation of sensitive sites into less sensitive sites’.

Kames’ own assessment of the site recognised that this is a landscape whose ‘sensitivity is high due to value (designation) and lack of development/ activity; remoteness, tranquillity and visual exposure from seaward’.

This being so, Kames must accept that there is a heavy burden on it to identify the impacts of its proposal and how the impacts could possibly be acceptable.

Your report of Kames’ reaction shows it taking altogether too narrow an approach to the evidence it has to produce. It has to go much further than merely offering ‘consideration’. Unless Kames adduces a compelling scientific case showing that there will be no or minimal damage, its proposal should be withdrawn and relocated to an area where it will do no damage. David Furze, Dounie House, Salen Mor Bay.