Species monitoring, compliance, and community engagement are among the planned measures.
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The Albanese Labor Government is investing AUD 28 million (approximately USD 18.4 million) in improving water quality and environmental conditions at Macquarie Harbour for a more sustainable salmon industry.
To be more precise, AUD 21 million will be allocated to improving and scaling up oxygenation in Macquarie Harbour. Another AUD 5 million will focus on the Maugean Skate breeding program. Finally, AUD 2.5 million will be dedicated to monitoring the species and the environment, as well as compliance and community engagement.
On one hand, oxygenation will help offset the effects of human activities, while engagement with the nearby community of Strahan and environmental monitoring will help better understand the ecosystems and Macquarie Harbour health.
Regarding this, the Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry Julie Collins alerted: "Tasmania’s independent environmental regulator has already confirmed oxygen levels in Macquarie Harbour are rising, and the Albanese Labor Government is pleased to be supporting measures to continue these improvements."
Additionally, Senator for Tasmania Anne Urquhart said: "This announcement is about delivering a strong future for fish farming in Macquarie Harbour. We know that engineered oxygenation has worked overseas, and a trial already underway in Macquarie Harbour is showing increasing levels of dissolved oxygen."
In the same line, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese expressed: "The Tasmanian salmon industry is the backbone of many regional communities and it’s essential we support the thousands of jobs it creates right across the state. That's exactly what this will help to do making sure we have a sustainable salmon industry and deliver stability for workers and their families into the future."
According to the latest edition of the Australian Bureau of Agricultural and Resource Economics and Sciences (ABARES) Australian Fisheries and Aquaculture Statistics, driven by the increase in salmonid value, aquaculture's share of total Australian fisheries and aquaculture gross value production in 2021-22 was 56%.
Specifically, the gross value of fisheries and aquaculture production (GVP) in 2021-22 increased by 8% to AUD 3.42 billion (EUR 2.10 billion / USD 2.31 billion). This means that aquaculture stood out within the Australian seafood industry, surpassing the value of wild catch.