MOWI MARINE FISH FARMING PLANNING APPLICATION

Mowi has made a planning application to increase the size and tonnage of the existing Port Na Mine (Etive 3) fish-farm.

There has been a planning application from MOWI – Reference number - 25/00093/MFF.

You can find the detailed documents here

The planning application impacts Etive 3 and proposes to replace existing 10 x 70m circumference pens in 2 x 5 grid with 6 x 120m circumference pens in 1 x 6 grid, including increasing biomass from 458.4 tonnes to 700 tonnes and installation of feed barge. See map below (the blue indicates existing Etive 2 & 3 and red is the proposed).

proposed expansion of Etive 3

You can object to this new planning application either via the website or via email.

OBJECT VIA WEBSITE OBJECT VIA EMAIL

You can only object to this planning application for any or all the following reasons:

  • Visual appearance and landscape - surface area of the farm will double in size
  • Nuisances such as - lights (surface & underwater), interference in public right to navigate, noise
  • Environmental impact - (water pollution, waste discharges and contamination of the sea-bed)
  • Economic threat to other jobs - despoiling landscape will deter tourism
  • Impact on nature conservation - (sea-trout, salmon, otters, seals, crabs, other crustaceans)
  • Compatibility with existing uses - e.g. fishing, tourism, nature conservation, recreational use of Etive
  • Adverse safety impact - to recreational and other boat traffic

SURFACE LIGHTING AND LED UNDERWATER LIGHTS

There will be use of surface and underwater lights as stated on page 3 of the planning application form (extract below):

”In addition to any surface lighting the NLB require there may be periods between November and May where low intensity, downward-facing LED underwater lights may be deployed, at a depth of up to 10m. These are used to prevent early maturation when farming Atlantic salmon. Given the brackish water of Loch Etive, operational depth and orientation of the lights they are not anticipated to result in surface glare.”

SURFACE AREA OF ETIVE 3 WILL DOUBLE AND MOORING AREA WILL INCREASE BY 600%

SURFACE AREA Existing Proposed INCREASE
Square Metres 3,899 6,954 3,055
Hectares 0.39 0.70 0.31
MOORINGS AREA Existing Proposed INCREASE
Square Metres 58,671 357,265 298,594
Hectares 5.9 35.7 29.8

CAGE SIZES AND MOORINGS GRIDS DOUBLED

PRODUCTION Existing Proposed DIFFERENCE
Type of units (cages, pens etc) Pens No change No change
Number of Units 10 6 4 less
Shape of Units Circles No change No change
Cage sizes / longline length 70m circumference 120m circumference 50m increase
Number of cage/longline/raft/trestle Group 1 (2x5) 1 (1x6)
Mooring grid dimensions for each unit (circular cages) 40m 75m 35m increase

WEIGHT OF FARMED FISH ALMOST DOUBLED

PRODUCTION Existing Proposed INCREASE
Maximum stocked biomass (tonnes) 458.4 700 241.6 tonnes
Maximum production biomass per cycle (tonnes) 458.4 700 241.6 tonnes
Proposed production cycle (months) 6 months No change
Stocking densities 11.8 kg/m3 6.1 kg/m3 5.7 kg/m3
Fallow Periods Repeated synchronous loch wide fallows
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