Tuna lobby summer clean-up collected over 500kgs of waste every day

Malta’s tuna lobby said that it had collected nearly half a tonne of trash every day, and 45kgs of waste oils on a daily basis, during a summer clean-up of the island’s coastal waters.

The Federation of Malta Aquaculture Producers said its operating arm Aquaculture Resources Limited, had commissioned two vessels, equipped with maritime cleaning tools as well as RHIBs, to monitor a large stretch of the Maltese coast, from Mellieħa in the north down to Wied iż-Żurrieq in the south west.

The large boats, crewed by three workers each, received alerts from two public hotlines that allowed them to react to reports of all forms of trash found at sea.

The trash collected by the teams amounted to nearly half a ton of trash every day, apart from 45kgs of waste oil collected daily from the sea, and included all forms of maritime flotsam generated by various industrial practices or even recreational fisheries, including various plastics, jablo boxes, wooden pallets, organic waste and engine oils.

“We seek to improve our clean-up endeavours each year: this is not a reactive mission, but a committed belief in playing our part in ensuring the health and cleanliness of our waters,” said ARL director Charlon Gouder.

“Ideally, many industries should be doing something similar, because waste can be generated by various maritime industries or seaborne tourism services,” Gouder said.

The FMAP’s tuna pens are located 5km away from the Mellieħa coast. While these are inspected by the Environment and Resources Authority on a weekly basis, the lobby is accused of contributing to the creation of ‘sea slime’ – a by-product from the tuna feeding process.

The ARL said this slick is a biodegradable product generated from the feed – mackerel or sardine – administered to caged tuna. “The concentration of this baitfish in cages makes it susceptible to strong currents. However, it is also true that after storms, natural slicks can be formed when strong currents pick up algae dislodged from the seaweed beds, with their nutrient naturally dispersed into the form of a slimy slick. Indeed, in previous years even the ERA has acknowledged that blooms of blue-green algae have been responsible for the foamy substance known as ‘sea snot’.”

The ARL also said that given Mellieħa’s own heritage of tuna fishing, it is likely that wild tuna might seek shelter close to the coast and, in rare cases, move further inland.

“Illegal fishing might also mean that tuna caught during recreational fishing is let off near the coast.

“The tuna penning industry works under strict ICCAT rules and quotas, which means all our catch is accounted for. However, there are also cases where our clean-up teams found the remains of a tuna that was filleted out at sea: this is an indication of a catch by recreational fishers,” Gouder said.

Malta’s tuna farms are obliged by their environmental permits to have booms encircling their cages to collect any feed by-product or slime as it is generated.

ARL said that with this fish weighing in excess of 240kg, strong currents can be generated within the cage during feeding time, exacerbating the chances of a slick.

“A balance has to be sought between the dimensions of the booms and ensuring adequate water flow into the cages, for the welfare of the tuna. Any slicks are subject to different winds and currents that can take all sorts of trajectories. What must be ensured is that the slick is collected before it leaves the farm,” Gouder said.

“Ultimately, we believe that anyone who uses the sea as a resource needs to contribute to its upkeep and cleanliness. We are playing our part, and hope to be even more proactive in harnessing the good will of those who are actively involved in the constant clean-up activities of our coasts and seas.”