Local communities fight a ‘David and Goliath battle’
CLAIMS by the salmon farming industry the sector is sustainable are an illusion and can easily be disproved, campaigners allege. Among them is Katie Tunn, a Skye-based artist and ocean advocate involved with marine conservation organisations, who says farms cannot be held to account.
“We know they have a negative effect on their immediate surroundings, whether that be in terms of disturbance to cetaceans, insecticides affecting seabed wildlife or the plastic piping that is now common on most Skye beaches.
“To me, these are all reasons in themselves to move away from salmon farm expansion. There’s also a much wider impact on marine ecosystems in terms of the forage fish that go into feeding farmed salmon.”
Another issue, Ms Tunn says, is that seabird populations are declining.
“Few people are aware that the main cause of this is a lack of food generated by overfishing.
“These little fish aren’t even used for human consumption. The capelins and sand eels that go into fishmeal are vital to wildlife like puffins – just one species that suffers a knock-on effect from these expanding salmon farms.”
She also accuses the farming companies of deceiving local communities by branding themselves as the underdogs and saying they are on the side of local people.
Referring to the Flodigarry and Balmaqueen communities on Skye opposed to farms in their vicinity, she says: “While there are people in the area who support and work for fish farms, the overwhelming majority do not want this industry to expand here and it feels like a David and Goliath battle.”
Ian Dobb, a retired campaigner living on Skye with experience of planning applications, also feels local voices in opposition are not being heard.
“The odds are stacked against the local community. The councils are hellbent on aquaculture expansion regardless and the large corporates you are fighting have well paid specialist agents.
“Even if you manage to win and get a refusal at the planning stage, it goes to appeal. They have expensive Edinburgh lawyers fighting and no doubt meeting with government representatives.”
Local communities in Skye, he adds, simply do not want new farms.
“If the authorities were listening to local communities, it should be an open and shut case. In my opinion, the Scottish Government leans on the councils and controls the regulators, who appear to be scared to say what they really think.
"The odds are stacked and you feel you’re fighting a rearguard action right from the start.”