fisheries – Page 6 – ANGFA Queensland

Recreational fishers win right to take from protected green zones

community, fisheries, government, research, waterways/wetlands

Feb 032014

Original story by Brian Williams, Sunday Mail

AMATEUR fishers have pledged to fight for as many green zones as possible to be opened to fishing after getting the go ahead from the State Government.

The move has been heavily criticised by University of Queensland ecologist and laureate fellow Hugh Possingham, who said research shows that green zones produced more and larger fish.

Sunfish chief executive Judy Lynne said it was not clear how much access would be sought but she had already received about 20 submissions – and the Mirapool green zone on Moreton Island was top of the list.

Green zones are the marine equivalent of national parks.

She said north Queensland and Great Sandy Marine Park fishers at Hervey Bay also opposed green zones in their areas.

National Parks Minister Steve Dickson announced during the Redcliffe by-election that recreational fishers could soon be able to fish at Scotts Point, Redcliffe, under a plan to change marine park zoning.

Premier Campbell Newman said he wanted to rezone 100m at Scotts Point to allow recreational fishing. It would become a special management area.

Mr Dickson has also called on fishermen to identify other green zones that they would like to fish.

“If there’s an area near you with good public access to the shoreline, where recreational fishing would have minimal impact on the environment, I urge you to tell your local MP,” he said.

The move has been heavily criticised by University of Queensland ecologist and laureate fellow Hugh Possingham, who said research showed that green zones produced more and larger fish.

“Larger fish have four to five times as many babies as fish half their size,” he said. “That’s why marine reserves are really good. It’s why recreational and professional fishers know to cluster at the edge of reserves because the fish they can catch there are much bigger than those in other areas.

“Opening up green zones defeats the purpose of fishers who want to catch more and bigger fish.”

Professor Possingham, who was on a scientific committee that helped determine bay zonings, called on Mr Dickson to reverse the decision.

Sunfish supported nursery areas being protected but believed many places that had been closed had little conservation value.

Ms Lynne said Sunfish supported nursery areas being protected but believed many places that had been closed had little conservation value.

Professor Possingham said recreational fishers already had ample fishing grounds, with access to 84 per cent of Moreton Bay.

Opening the beach at Scotts Point, it ensured fishers would be able to target species like whiting, flathead and bream in a prime area, leaving the rest of the zone as a protected area. This ensured the Government could say it had kept green zones even though critical areas were being fished.

Ms Lynne said Scott’s Point had no conservation value.

“We’re not prepared to accept that taking three or four fish has an impact,’’ she said.

Professor Possingham said the danger in recreational fishing was the cumulative impact which in some areas was so great that its take outweighed commercial fishing.

He said fishing in green zones had the potential to reduce positive results of protection.

A 2012 CSIRO Moreton Bay report says: “Although the new green zones have only been in place for approximately two years ... the average biomass of snapper, spangled emperor, redthroat emperor, black spot tusk fish, Maori rock cod and goldspot wrasse all increased in the new green zones.

“Changes to the marine park are still new and many of these species are long-lived, therefore the responses of populations within the new green zones may take many years to become fully evident.’’

Professor Possingham said it was odd that the Government would remove protection when good results had appeared so fast.

He said arguments that green zones led to impacts on camping and fishing shops and reduced boat sales were incorrect given growth in the industry.

Let us know what you think of fishing in green zones. Leave your comments below

Fingerlings a boost

Australian native freshwater species, fisheries, threatened species, waterways/wetlands

Feb 012014

Original story by Rebecca Sharpe, The Land

URBANISATION, habitat degradation and waterway barriers have led to decreased numbers of native fish in NSW waterways in recent years, but programs by the Department of Primary Industries (DPI) have worked on restocking fish in these areas.

Native fish fingerlings ready for release.

Under constant threat of having their habitat destroyed, native fish have needed a helping hand from organisations such as the DPI and Landcare to increase numbers as well as improve recreational fishing opportunities.

NSW DPI fisheries management officer Ben Doolan, Nelson Bay, said close to three million trout and salmon and two million native fish, produced by government and private commercial hatcheries, were stocked into inland NSW waters each year.

“There are four species of salmonids, which are rainbow trout, brown trout, Atlantic salmon, brook trout, and four native species, which includes Australian bass, golden perch, Murray cod, silver perch, stocked for recreational fishing,” he said.

“Trout cod and Macquarie perch are stocked for conservation purposes to aid in the recovery of those species.”

Typically, four hatcheries provide fingerlings, also known as fry, for restocking.

The Port Stephens Fisheries Institute hatchery produce Australian bass, which are released into major impoundments along the east coast including Glenbawn Dam, Glennies Creek Dam and Lostock Dam in the upper Hunter Valley, Tallowa Dam near Kangaroo Valley, and Lake Wallace and Lake Lyell near Lithgow.

Mr Doolan said during restocking seasons, which varied for each species of fish, there were no restrictions for recreational fishers.

“We aren’t usually too concerned about recreational fishers being in the vicinity of newly released fish,” he said.

“The fry or fingerlings are not susceptible to recreational fishing due to their size and are mobile and will find suitable habitat.”

However, closed fishing seasons for some species have been implemented to reduce pressure or interaction with mature fish during times of spawning.

“Some species are closed for a period of time during the year, however trout cod and eastern freshwater cod are protected all year round and must be released if caught,” he said.

“There is a closure on all forms of fishing in the Murray River between Yarrawonga and Tocumwal for added protection during the (trout cod) breeding season and throughout the Mann River and some of its tributaries during August and October for eastern freshwater cod.”

Mr Doolan said these closures were primarily implemented to protect the adult fish, although the trout and salmon closure protected juvenile trout as it stopped recreational fishers wading in rivers – an activity which could disturb eggs attached to stones or gravel.

Volunteers to help control willow numbers along Murrumbidgee

community, fisheries, government, pest species, waterways/wetlands

Feb 012014

Original story by Megan Doherty at The Sydney Morning Herald

A team of volunteers will be taking to the water by kayak near Canberra to tackle the scourge of Australian waterways - the willow.

The NSW Government is providing an additional $10,400 to a project called the Upper Murrumbidgee Demonstration Reach, which controls willow trees along 45 kilometres of the Upper Murrumbidgee. Trimming the willow trees from her canoe, Anthea Brademann, facilitator of the upper Murrumbidgee demonstration reach. Photo: Katherine Griffiths.

NSW Minister for Primary Industries Katrina Hodgkinson and the member for Monaro, John Barilaro, on Friday announced a $10,400 grant for a fish habitat project to control willow trees along a stretch of the Upper Murrumbidgee River.

Ms Hodgkinson conceded it was not a huge amount of money but a ''wise investment'' in the health of the river.

''This is a terrific local project, which will improve the Upper Murrumbidgee River and provide better access for fish, improve fish habitats, and ultimately produce more fish,'' she said.

''Willow infestation is a major issue for river health and native fish habitats - it can destroy native plants and wildlife habitats, alter stream flows, cause flooding by blocking the natural watercourse, and reduce water quality.''

The money will be used to fund the Upper Murrumbidgee Demonstration Reach project, which extends from Bredbo in NSW to Casuarina Sands in the ACT.

The funding will cover about a 50-kilometre stretch from Bredbo to Angle Crossing at the NSW-ACT border.

Project facilitator Antia Brademann said they would work to control young emerging willows growing in-stream.

The aim is to remove the willows before they have a chance to establish, when they become more costly and difficult to remove.

''We're also interested in working with the landowners to work on the banks,'' she said.

Ms Brademann said willows could quickly colonise river banks and cause problems for the aquatic ecosystem. ''They block everything else and have quite a fibrous root mass, and that tends to affect habitats on the bank. Platypus also find it very difficult to burrow into the bank,'' she said.

''We also get leaf fall from the willow in the autumn and we often get a rotting muck at the bottom of the water. It degenerates water quality and raises phosphate levels.''

Senior aquatic ecologist with the ACT government Dr Lisa Evans said the territory would offer advice for the NSW side of the project. She said the ACT would also do cross-border fish monitoring to see if the project was having an effect.

The project is being led by the community organisation Kosciuszko 2 Coast, with other funding from the Murray Darling Basin Authority and Bush Heritage Australia.

Mr Barilaro said the project would result in a healthier, more resilient and sustainable river.

The effects of catch-and-release fishing on sharks

fisheries, threatened species

Jan 302014

Media release from the University of Miami Rosenstiel School of Marine & Atmospheric Science at Eurekalert

Lead author and Abess Center Ph.D candidate Austin Gallagher draws blood from shark. Photo: Christine Shepard

Researchers analyze blood chemistry, reflexes, and post-release survival of five coastal shark species in South Florida

A new study led by scientists at the University of Miami (UM) Abess Center for Ecosystem Science and Policy and the Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science investigated how several species of coastal sharks respond to stress from catch-and-release fishing. The results revealed that each of the shark species responded differently. Hammerhead sharks were by far the most vulnerable to fighting on a fishing line.

The research team angles Tiger Shark up to the boat to begin samples. Photo: Christine Shepherd

The UM scientists experimentally simulated catch-and-release fishing on five shark species – hammerhead, blacktip, bull, lemon and tiger sharks – in South Florida and Bahamian waters. Researchers took blood samples to examine stress, including pH, carbon dioxide and lactate levels, conducted reflex tests, as well as used satellite tags to look at their post-release survival. Fighting on a fishing line significantly affected the blood lactate levels of sharks, similar to what happens to humans during intense or exhaustive physical exercise, which has been linked to mortality in many species of fish. The study revealed that even with minimal degrees of fighting on a fishing line, hammerhead exhibited the highest levels of lactic acid build of all species studied, followed by blacktip, bull, lemon and tiger sharks. Tagging results also suggested that, after release, hammerheads were also prone to delayed mortality.

"Our results show that while some species, like tiger sharks, can sustain and even recover from minimal catch and release fishing, other sharks, such as hammerheads are more sensitive" said lead author and Abess Center Ph.D candidate Austin Gallagher. "Our study also revealed that just because a shark swims away after it is released, doesn't mean that it will survive the encounter. This has serious conservation implications because those fragile species might need to be managed separately, especially if we are striving for sustainability in catch and release fishing and even in bycatch scenarios."

Adds study co-author Dr. Neil Hammerschlag, a Research Assistant Professor at UM, "Many shark populations globally are declining due to overfishing. Shark anglers are some of the biggest advocates for shark conservation. Most have been making the switch from catch and kill to all catch and release. Our study helps concerned fisherman make informed decisions on which sharks make good candidates for catch and release fishing, and which do not, such as hammerheads."

The study, titled "Physiological stress response, reflex impairment and survival of five sympatric shark species following experimental capture and release," was published in the special theme issue "Tracking fitness in marine vertebrates "in the journal Marine Ecology Progress. The paper's co-authors are Austin J. Gallagher, Neil Hammerschlag, Joseph E. Serafy of the National Marine Fisheries Service in Miami and Steven J. Cooke of the Ottawa-Carleton Institute of Biology and Institute of Environmental Science in Ontario, Canada.

Check out a video to accompany this article: http://rjd.miami.edu/research/projects/stressed-out-fish To learn more about this research, please visit http://www.SharkTagging.com

Pacific oysters unexplained deaths in NSW

community, fisheries, government, waterways/wetlands

Jan 242014

Close-up of a man holding a Pacific oyster, Port Stephens. Photo: Ben Millington ABC

Original story by David Claughton, ABC Rural

Scientists in NSW have one card left to play to identify the cause of massive oyster deaths in Port Stephens.

A mysterious illness is wiping out the Pacific oysters, while leaving the smaller Sydney Rock variety growing unharmed.

Port Stephens is the second biggest production area in NSW.

There are about 60 growers and Pacific oysters make up 25 per cent of the production there.

Ian Lyall, from the NSW Department of Fisheries, says scientists at Elizabeth Macarthur Agricultural Institute have been looking for a cause since oysters starting dying 12 months ago, but haven't found any signs of disease.

"The final thing we can do is what's called a transmission trial, set up to exclude a transmissible agent and that could take a few months."

Mr Lyall says pollution could be the other cause of oyster deaths.

"Researchers are working closely with the NSW Food Authority to analyse water quality and the Environmental Protection Agency to look at pollution, but we have not come across a single agent or group of agents that are causing these mortalities."

He says growers are very upset.

"This is a very valuable crop and the loss of income is really impacting on the growers who focus on Pacific oysters."

There is some assistance available, but the State Government has encouraged growers to diversify into different species and sources of income, saying that it can't continue to help after a series of disastrous disease outbreaks and weather events in recent years.

Growers in Wallis Lake, the state's biggest oyster production area, have stopped taking oysters from Port Stephens to limit the spread of whatever is affecting them.

Growers on the South Coast are unaffected.

Sharks and rays globally overfished

fisheries, government, threatened species

Jan 212014

Media release from Simon Fraser University

Guitarfishes are among the most threatened rays, due to the high value of their large fins. They are classified as vulnerable by IUCN. Photo: Matt D. Potenski/Flickr

One quarter of the world’s cartilaginous fish, namely sharks and rays, face extinction within the next few decades, according to the first study to systematically and globally assess their fate.

The International Union for Conservation of Nature’s (IUCN’s) Shark Specialist Group(SSG), co-chaired by Nick Dulvy, a Simon Fraser University (SFU) Canada Research Chair in Marine Biodiversity and Conservation in British Columbia, conducted the study.

It was published in eLife journal today.

Previous studies have documented local overfishing of some populations of sharks and rays. But this is the first one to survey their status through out coastal seas and oceans. It reveals that one-quarter (249) of 1,041 known shark, ray and chimaera species globally fall under three threatened categories on the IUCN Red List.

“We now know that many species of sharks and rays, not just the charismatic white sharks, face extinction across the ice-free seas of the world,” says Dulvy. “There are no real sanctuaries for sharks where they are safe from overfishing.”

Over two decades, the authors applied the IUCN’s Red List categories and criteria to the 1,041 species at 17 workshops involving more than 300 experts. They incorporated all available information on distribution, catch, abundance, population trends, habitat use, life histories, threats and conservation measures.

Sharks and rays are at substantially higher risk of extinction than many other animals and have the lowest percentage of species considered safe. Using the IUCN Red List, the authors classified 107 species of rays (including skates) and 74 species of sharks as threatened. Just 23 percent of species were labeled as being Least Concern.

The authors identified two main hotspots for shark and ray depletion—the Indo-Pacific (particularly the Gulf of Thailand), the Red Sea and the Mediterranean Sea.

“In the most peril are the largest species of rays and sharks, especially those living in relatively shallow water that is accessible to fisheries. The combined effects of overexploitation—especially for the lucrative shark fin soup market—and habit degradation are most severe for the 90 species found in freshwater.

“A whole bunch of wildly charismatic species is at risk. Rays, including the majestic manta and devil rays, are generally worse off than sharks. Unless binding commitments to protect these fish are made now, there is a real risk that our grandchildren won’t see sharks and rays in the wild.”

Losing these fish will be like losing whole chapters of our evolutionary history says Dulvy. “They are the only living representatives of the first lineage to have jaws, brains, placentas and the modern immune system of vertebrates.”

The potential loss of the largest species is frightening for many reasons, says Dulvy. “The biggest species tend to have the greatest predatory role. The loss of top or apex predators cascades throughout marine ecosystems.”

The IUCN SSG is calling on governments to safeguard sharks, rays and chimaeras through a variety of measures, including the following: prohibition on catching the most threatened species, science-based fisheries quotas, protection of key habitats and improved enforcement.

Simon Fraser University is consistently ranked among Canada's top comprehensive universities and is one of the top 50 universities in the world under 50 years old. With campuses in Vancouver, Burnaby and Surrey, B.C., SFU engages actively with the community in its research and teaching, delivers almost 150 programs to more than 30,000 students, and has more than 125,000 alumni in 130 countries.

Breakthrough in understanding of fish disease

fisheries

Jan 192014

Orginal story at ABC Radio

Scientists in Tasmania have made a major breakthrough in their understanding of a disease that can wipe out farmed fish stocks.

Scientists have made a breakthrough in their understanding of a disease that can wipe out fish stocks. Photo: ABC.

Epitheliocystis is a disease found in wild and farmed fish around the world.

Australian Maritime College PhD student Megan Stride says outbreaks can be costly for fish farms.

"We have seen cases where whole tanks of fish, and we're talking about 100,000 fish, have been knocked out overnight because of it," she said.

Ms Stride has been studying the disease in farmed barramundi, yellowtail king fish and striped trumpeter.

She has discovered that different bacteria cause epitheliocystis in each of those fish species.

The findings will make it easier to detect the bacteria before the disease occurs.

While it is only early days, it is hoped the research will eventually lead to more effective treatment of the disease and fewer deaths.

Fish that work as sentinels of water quality

environment, fisheries, waterways/wetlands

Dec 092013

News release from the Universidad Politécnica de Madrid

A research project developed by the National Institute for Agricultural and Food Research and Technology (INIA) and the School of Forestry at the Technical University of Madrid has studied how to use fish farms to detect water quality in our rivers. There is a slight contamination that does not affect product quality and can trigger physiological reactions on fish. The analysis of these changes can be a good biomarker for water quality.

The monitoring of water quality is a great challenge today, particularly when it comes to accomplishing the corresponding requirements of the Water Framework Directive of the European Union. To carry out chemical analysis continuously is complex and expensive, and also provides limited data about the chemical compounds which ignores the influence of those excluded in the analysis. Another problem is the effect of all the compounds present in the concentrations that cannot be detected by the traditional analytical methods.

Biomarkers are being increasingly used to solve the just mentioned problems. Biomarkers are also witnesses of water conditions and are indeed being used in this research.

During the project, the researchers monitored two fish farms for three years and used three different approaches in order to show evidence of the trace levels of contaminants. Firstly, they analyzed fish in fish farms regularly and analyzed the induction of detoxification processes which are activated by the presence of contaminants.

Secondly, the fish were moved to the fish farm of the School of Forestry which has good water quality. It was observed that after a week these processes of detoxification had disappeared in the fish. This suggests that the fish were exposed to chemical elements in the first fish farm that was researched.

Thirdly, they analyzed chemicals in the fish farms sediments. They only found high abnormal levels of in a few chemicals in some samples. These results do not explain the processes that had been seen induced on the fish. Therefore, there may be substances in undetectable concentrations than can cause the observed effects.

Reference: QUESADA-GARCÍA, A.; VALDEHITA, A.; TORRENT, F.; VILLARROEL, M.; HERNANDO, M.D.; NAVAS, J.M. “Use of fish farms to assess river contamination: Combining biomarker responses, active biomonitoring, and chemical analysis”. Aquatic Toxicology 140: 439-448. DOI: 10.1016/j.aquatox.2013.07.007. SEP 2013.

Research shows single-use plastic contaminating our oceans

environment, fisheries, research, waterways/wetlands, wildlife

Nov 292013

Original story by Beau Pearson, ABC News

An academic studying Australian water pollution, is encouraging people to use less single-use plastic products in order to reduce marine pollution.

The University of WA's Julia Reisser says every square kilometre of Australian surface sea water is contaminated by around 4,000 tiny pieces of plastic.

A recycling symbol on the side of a water bottle. Julia Reisser is encouraging people to reduce single-use plastics such as disposable water bottles. Photo: Giulio Saggin, ABC News

The research found most of the particles were a result of a breakdown of disposable products such as water bottles, plastic cups and fishing gear.

'The sun and the heat makes the plastic weaker and it breaks down with time,'' she said.

"So let's say a plastic bottle that someone throws at the beach goes into the ocean and as it gets older and older it breaks down into little particles."

Ms Reisser says the plastics soak up pollutants, are harmful to marine life and also humans that ingest the seafood.

"When they are in the ocean it acts like a sponge for oil pollutants, for example fertilisers, so any oil pollutants that float in the water with the plastic will be attracted to the surface of the plastic and then this plastic is loaded with many kinds of pollutants," she said.

"When an animal eats it, it can be released to the animal and will intoxicate the animal, not only in the animal that ingested the plastic but also any predator of this animal, so this problem can even come to us as we eat seafood."

She says water bottles and plastic cups are a large part of the pollution.

"The solution is not simple and can involve more than one action, but I still believe that one important point is to decrease the amount of plastic waste that we are producing and to do so perhaps one of the easiest ways will be to decrease the amount of single use throwaway plastics that we use," she said.

"We need to decrease plastic waste and toxicity, regulate plastic disposal on land at an international level, and better enforce the laws prohibiting dumping plastics at sea."

Why it’s safer to eat shellfish in months with a letter ‘R’

community, environment, fisheries, waterways/wetlands

Nov 232013

Original story by Callum Whyte, Scottish Association for Marine Science at The Conversation

Vomiting since 500-470 BC. Photo: Stefano Bolognini

As I was growing up, any time my mother suggested buying mussels or cockles for dinner, my gran would pipe up with the old adage that “you should only be eating shellfish when there’s an ‘R’ in the month”. In truth, my gran didn’t much care for seafood any month of the year but is there any validity in that old saying?

The waters around our coasts abound with different species of microscopic organisms. Many of them are autotrophic, which means they gain sustenance by photosynthesising the sunlight that filters down through the water column. Others are heterotrophic and need to consume prey to survive and a number of others, called mixotrophs, do a bit of both. This microscopic micro-plankton community sits at the bottom of the intricate food web that extends throughout our seas and oceans and shellfish, both wild and farmed, feed on it.

Warning on Cape Scott Trail, British Columbia. Photo: Rick McCharles

Diarrhoea, memory and paralysis

While the vast majority of these organisms are perfectly harmless, there are a few that are capable of producing a range of different toxins that can get into these shellfish and cause food poisoning – it isn’t just that shellfish have “gone off”. And these toxins can’t simply be removed by cooking in high temperatures.

The most familiar of these, diarrhoeal shellfish poisoning, struck 70 unfortunate mussel eaters in south-east England in July. Symptoms include diarrhoea but also common are nausea, vomiting and cramps that can begin within half an hour of eating infected shellfish.

There are three other forms of shellfish poisoning, each caused by different toxins and found in varying areas of the world. Paralytic shellfish poisoning caused mainly by saxitoxin can, as you probably guessed, cause paralysis. What starts as a tingling in your arms and legs can lead to paralysis of the lungs and in the worst cases can kill in a couple of hours.

Pseudo nitzschia produces domoic acid, which causes amnesic poisoning. Photo: Sams

Neurotoxic shellfish poisoning causes muscle ache and pinprick sensations, and the final type, amnesic shellfish poisoning, caused by the toxin domoic acid can cause permanent short-term memory loss, brain damage and death.

Plating up

Luckily, these forms are more rare and most outbreaks of shellfish poisoning feature more diarrhoea than paralysis. The July outbreak was traced back to mussels that had come from the coast of Shetland, which resulted in the closure of the fishery and several harvesting sites for several weeks. The responsible toxins in this case – okadaic acid and its derivative dinophysistoxins (DTX’s) – are produced by an attractive species of winged dinoflagellates, a group of marine plankton and persistent offender also known as Dinophysis.

Not to be confused with flagellants, though poisoning by these also hurts. Image: Fickleandfreckled

They are ubiquitous around our coasts, but of the 100 different species of Dinophysis or so that have been identified, only eight are confirmed to produce toxins. They are generally found in relatively low concentrations and present very little risk to the public. However, as with many of the other toxin producing micro-plankton, problems can arise as under the right conditions, their numbers start to increase. Concentrations of these organisms become what are known as harmful algal blooms. And they can occasionally reach levels high enough to discolour the water, turning it red, brown or green, giving rise to the term “red tide”.

Algal blooms from space. Van Gogh from Space

Not all species have to be present in large numbers to produce toxicity in shellfish. The number of Dinophysis found around Shetland this summer wasn’t enough to discolour the water but was much higher than usual, probably because unusual wind patterns in Shetland in June and July blew them onshore where they accumulated in the inlets and bays along the coast. And so the stage was set for the unfortunate poisoning finale over a thousand miles away.

So should you only eat shellfish when there’s an “R” in the month? Well, the majority of the dinoflagellate species that are capable of producing toxins are happiest when the top layers of the waters where they grow are stratified – when water with different properties form separate layers and levels of nutrients. This tends to happen during the summer months as the sun heats up the surface layer of the sea, lowering its density and allowing it to float on top of the cooler, denser water below. Perfect for marine plankton to thrive.

So, in general, there is likely to be more risk of a harmful bloom in summer and, as a rule of thumb, in the past abiding by the old aphorism may have saved you from some unpleasant stomach upsets.

Warmer seas and worrying blooms

Unfortunately, as sea temperatures continue to rise, the conditions favouring dinoflagellate growth are becoming more common and around the globe harmful algal blooms are perceived to be on the increase.

Warmer seas also mean that these favourable conditions can begin earlier in the year and end later, sadly, extending their growing season into months that do have an “R” in them.

Much of the shellfish produced in UK waters is farmed and as the industry continues to grow, the threat of closure due to harmful algae blooms is a worrying one.

Fortunately in the UK, research to find better prediction methods is ongoing, and the Food Standards Agency regularly monitors shellfish growing areas to ensure that the shellfish arriving on our plates is safe to eat. And while some areas may occasionally be forced to close there will always be others free from toxic algae where the shellfish can be safely harvested whatever month of the year.

Callum Whyte does not work for, consult to, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has no relevant affiliations.

This article was originally published at The Conversation.
Read the original article.

Older Entries Newer Entries