The prime minister has written to the salmon industry to confirm federal environmental laws will be introduced that will ensure the continuation of salmon farming operations off Tasmania’s west coast.
In a letter to the industry seen by the ABC, Anthony Albanese said he was committed to ensuring that salmon farms operations would continue and “no jobs will be lost”.
“I can confirm that the Australian Government will introduce legislation to ensure appropriate environmental laws are in place to continue sustainable salmon farming in Macquarie Harbour,” Mr Albanese wrote.
The industry’s future in the harbour has been in doubt since November 2023, after three conservation groups requested the federal government reassess whether the salmon industry has the necessary approvals under the federal Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act (EPBC).
It followed reports that the endangered Maugean skate — whose only known habitat is in the harbour — had experienced a significant population decline, primarily caused by a lack of dissolved oxygen in the water from farming operations.
Environment Minister Tanya Plibersek is still considering the request, and has not provided a time frame on when she will make her decision.
However, on Saturday Mr Albanese said the EPBC did “not allow for a common sense solution on an acceptable timeline”.
“My commitment to you, your employees, suppliers and the community is that salmon farming operations on Macquarie Harbour will continue and that no jobs will be lost,” he wrote.
Mr Albanese’s letter did not say when the legislation will be introduced and if it will affect Ms Plibersek’s ongoing review.
A separate decision on whether to increase the threatened species listing of the Maugean skate from endangered to critically endangered has been postponed until after the federal election.
Mixed reaction to PM’s letter
Tasmanian aquaculture provides most of the Atlantic salmon produced in Australia, and much of the small community of Strahan, in the key electorate of Braddon, works in the industry.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese visited Macquarie Harbour with West Coast Council mayor Shane Pitt (far left) and Senator Anne Urquhart. (ABC News: Glenn Dickson)
The two major parties have tried to win over the community with shows of support for the industry.
Last December, Opposition Leader Peter Dutton said he would back salmon farming in the harbour, even if the Maugean skate’s threatened species status worsened.
Labor meanwhile, hopes to win Braddon back from the Liberals with Labor Senator Ann Urquhart contesting the seat halfway through her Senate run.
Last November, the Albanese government promised a further $28 million to improve water quality in the harbour, with $21 million to go towards improving and scaling up oxygenation in Macquarie Harbour to “help offset the effects of human activities”.
West Coast Council mayor Shane Pitt called the letter a “major win”, deeming his community’s campaign to save salmon jobs a success.
“When I got the call this morning, I couldn’t help but fist-pump the air,” Cr Pitt said in a statement.
“Our community here on the West Coast, especially in Strahan, will breathe a collective sigh of relief.”
However, Liberal Senator Jonathan Duniam called the letter “a political fix” and questioned why the proposed legislative changes weren’t tabled earlier.
“We could have a bipartisan approach to this situation, but it proves this is cynical, last-minute politicking by a prime minister who realises he’s on the wrong side of this issue, so he sends a letter the day after parliament rises,” Senator Duniam said.
Greens Senator Nick McKim said Mr Albanese’s decision to support the industry would “play very badly” for Labor in key electorates.
“They’re going to smash the Maugean skate into extinction,” he said.
“This is an outrageous siding with the profits of foreign industrial salmon farming corporations over the marine health of Macquarie harbour”.
The Tasmanian government says it believes salmon farming can co-exist with conservation efforts to save the endangered Maugean skate. (Supplied: Tassal)
Maugean skate population stabilises
Mr Albanese’s letter coincides with new research published by the Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies (IMAS), which found research catch rates for the Maugean skate have returned to 2014 levels, following a decade of significant population decline.
IMAS researcher and lead author, Dr David Moreno, said this aligned with improved environmental conditions in the harbour, including an increase in dissolved oxygen levels.
In December 2023, the salmon industry and federal government made a joint investment into a “nano bubbles” trial to draw up low-oxygen water, fill it with highly concentrated bubbles of oxygen, and pump it back into the harbour at 30 to 40 metres depth, with the aim of re-oxygenating the harbour.
Dr Moreno said the skate’s population levels have not yet returned to the pre-2009 rate of juveniles contributing to the population.
A Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment, and Water spokesperson said Ms Plibersek has asked her department to review this new information and provide advice in light of the reconsideration process.
The report was welcomed by the Tasmanian government and the opposition.
Tasmanian Business, Industry and Resources Minister Eric Abetz said the results were “a clear indicator that the skate and salmon can co-exist”.
Meanwhile, Tasmanian Labor Leader Dean Winter called it a “great day for Tasmanian salmon workers”.
The Maugean skate’s population has returned to 2014 levels according to a new report from IMAS. (Supplied: Jane Rucker)
The Australian Marine Conservation Society (AMCS) remains unconvinced.
AMCS’s Dr Leonardo Guida said despite a slight improvement in the skate’s population, the fish remained vulnerable to extreme weather events and on-going salmon farming.
“Pumping oxygen into the water alone is not enough to repair the damage already done by at least a decade’s worth of industrialised salmon farming and more than 100,000 tonnes of salmon defecating in the harbour,” AMCS’s Dr Leonardo Guida said.
