A report commissioned by the Environment Protection Authority into the health of Macquarie Harbour on the state's West Coast has been released to the public.
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The release follows reports on Monday that fish farming company Huon Aquaculture would pursue legal action against the EPA and the state government for failing to effectively regulate salmon farming in the harbour.
Salmon farming has taken place at Macquarie Harbour since the late 1980s, with Huon Aquaculture, Tassal and Petuna Seafoods all presently farming at the site.
Last year it was revealed that the EPA report, which was compiled by the Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies in November, had found considerably low levels of dissolved oxygen and a decline in benthic fauna in the harbour and its surrounds.
The report is believed to have informed the EPA’s decision in January to reduce the harbour’s maximum permissible production from 21,500 tonnes to 14,000 tonnes.
In a statement release on Wednesday, an EPA spokesman said the organisation had always planned to release the report to the public as soon as possible.
“The three salmon companies were advised that this report would be made publically available as the earliest opportunity once it had been finalised and cleared by the University of Tasmania,” the statement read.
Greens environment spokeswoman Rosalie Woodruff said the report showed the harbour was in a critical state.
“The report confirms that dissolved oxygen levels throughout the harbour are catastrophically low, and unable to support life in some areas,” Ms Woodruff said.
“One lease site is virtually devoid of fauna out to at least half a kilometre from the cages.”
As well as detailing the deterioration of oxygen levels and macrofauna at the site, the report made a number of recommendations for improving the health of the harbour.
The report proposed further research into how the waterway’s poor health would affect the endangered Maugean skate, which is endemic to Tasmania, as well as how much fish farms contribute to low dissolved oxygen levels across the harbour.
The report also called for further investigations into the time required for sediment beneath salmon cages to recover after farming ceases.
The report can be viewed on the EPA website.
