Oysters have long been a delicacy for those who enjoy them; and Tasmania’s oysters have carved a reputation for being some of the best in the world.
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Australian producers have long been breeding and bolstering their own stock with oyster spat from the small island.
However, the Tasmanian oyster industry has become the first casualty in our booming agriculture and aquaculture industry that will have to adapt and change to increased extreme weather activity.
A second weather-related impact has occurred at George’s Bay on the East Coast this week after a severe weather event lead to an overflow of sewage at the Esplanade Sewage Pump Station.
The overflow caused an influx of e-coli bacteria into the bay and forced five oyster suppliers and one claim fisher to close.
Lease 65 oyster farm’s Craig Lockwood told The Examiner any rain event with more than 30mm of rain forced them to close their farm because of the influx of bacteria.
Early last year the industry was decimated with the discovery of Pacific Oyster Mortality Syndrome at a Pitt Water oyster lease. It was the first time POMS had been found in Tasmania.
POMS is a virus that puts oysters to sleep but their open shells leave them vulnerable to predators. It has a high mortality rate.
Warmer water temperatures are being investigated as the possible culprit that allowed POMS to flourish where it had never been detected before.
Since the find early last year, POMS remained dormant over the winter months, kept at bay by cooler water temperatures, but resurfaced late last year when the water temperatures heat up.
Climate change science is often contentious, some believe in it and others don’t.
However, in the past year alone, Tasmania has experienced an increase in extreme weather events, from bushfires to floods.
Tasmania’s oyster industry may be one of the first to evolve as a result of this impact but it won’t be the last.
Extreme weather events are likely to become more frequent and farmers will need to be on the front foot – as they always have been – to minimise the impact of Mother Nature.
The oyster industry has some way to go, a POMS-resistant variety of oyster is still months away yet and a way forward to minimise the impact of e-coli contamination will likely be on the cards.