Salmon lice infected salmon with open wounds from the lice. Photo: Norges Miljøvernforbund

In peaceful Norway a war is raging. And now the first victories from the battle front is being reported. This time from Norwegian TV2, who yesterday informed us that one of the major supermarket chains in the country, ICA, Rema 1000, NorgesGruppen and Coop has laid down an ultimatum against the farmed salmon industry.

Basically it goes as follows: ICA demands that the fish farming  industry gets environmentally sustainable, and moves it’s production to closed facilities within 3 years. And that they document that there is no health risk associated with eating farmed salmon. If not ICA and the other supermarket chains that virtually control the entire Norwegian food market, will cease the sale of farmed salmon in their stores.

Alternatives to the open net farming practiced today is under development, but the fish farming industry has been reluctant to invest in them.

-If fish has a tendency to attract certain diseases, one tries to prevent these diseases with agents that can be hazardous. Not only for the consumers in high concentrations, but also for other species in the environment says Antonio Soares, C.E.O of ICA to TV2

And he is right. Norwegian fish farmers have now started large scale medication against salmon lice.

The Norwegian salmon industry is now ready to embark on the grand scale poisoning of the norwegian coastline from Lofoten in the north to Lindesnes in the south.

At least 554 fish farms has applied to use Ektobann or Releaze to cure their multi resistant lice infected salmon over the next 5 months.  This is about 50% of all fish farms in Norway. In Rogaland more than 70% of the fish farms have applied to use the poison says TV2.

A report from the Norwegian Institute of Marine Research from 1999 says that these are poisonous for crustacea even in minuscule concentrations. A new report from the institute confirms this (NJFF).

– There is absolutely reason to worry over grand scale use of medicine against salmon lice. If the veterinaries say that they need these amounts, we have approved the applications.  says Tonje Høy of the Norwegian Medicines Agency to the newspaper Firda

So how much of this are they planning to release? I have looked at one salmon company, Pundslett Laks in the northern Lofoten Area. Some of their farms is situated in Raftsundet, near the famous Trollfjorden that thousands of passengers of Hurtigruten visits every year.

Pundslett Laks have applied to release 35 tons of feed pellets containing 2 grams of Ektobann per kilo. That is about 70 kilos of Ektobann released into the sea from the 8 fish farms that they have in the area. Most of it will however not be consumed by the farm salmon. Most of it will be consumed by wild cod and coal fish in and around the farms.

Unlike the farmed salmon that will be in quarantine  and can not be slaughtered for human consumption for 100 days after medication with Ektobann, there is no such restriction on wild fish. And when we now that feed pellets from fish farms have been found as much as 20 km from the nearest fish farm there is reason to be alarmed.

A Giant halibutt of 435lb (202kg) cought by a tourist in Nordland. Photo by: Wildwater Fishing AB

- Tourists takes about 3300 tons of fish in Norway each year according to the Institute of Marine Research. A large percentage, 1600 metric tons are cod,  reports the NRK.no in an article on their website.

The numbers appear in a report from the Institute of Marine Research and is based on numbers sent in to the institute over the last 3 years.  And they represent a major contrast to the estimated 15 000 metric tons today’s fishing policy is based upon.

In Norway, tourist fishing has it’s own quota, from the general ammount that commercial fishermen is alowed, and this is likely to be drastically reduced now that this report appears.

Jan Helge Vølstad of the Intitute of Marine Research says to NRK.no that:

– The numbers is based on catch diaries from around 4000 fishing days from the representative tourist businesses. But there will be some businesses  and companies we have not identified, and this we have taken into account in our report.

NRK.no adds that catches are small. On average between 10 -50 kg of fish.

Tourist fishing has however led to some conflicts between commercial fishermen and the tourists. At Sørøya in Finnmark a local fisherman says to NRK Nett TV:

- When the tourists fish under a raised pirate flag (The Jolly Roger) it’s **** provoking. They should at least raise themselves above such acts. Especially when we know the problems fishermen face under the current fishing policies.

And perhaps he has the right to be irritated. On the other hand, tourist fishermen is starting to react against tourist fishing abuse themselves. The person writing under the nick Linehanma on the World Sea Fishing Forum , just returned from a fishing trip to Skjervøy, griped that:

- One of the employees  (at the fishing camp) told us that the week before, some Germans took home 600kgs of fillets, but why do the fish camp not report this !

And recently two Estonians where stopped with more than 100 kg of fillets on the border with Sweden, as the limit is currently set at 15 kilos of fillet. They where fined about 1400 Euros for it.

Two Estonians admitted to carrying 97 and 115 kilos over the limit, and was fined NOK 11000 or about €1400.

I guess the advice is that if you come here, do not exceed the 15 kilo limit or the trip may get a bit more expensive than you bargained for.

Here are the rules:

Export quota for fish and fish products
No more than 15 kg of fish filets or fish products can be exported from Norway per person.

The export quota applies to catch from sport fishing in Norwegian territorial waters.

• The quota applies to whole/gutted fish or processed products, such as fish filets.
• Fish or fish products will not be included in the quota if it can be proved that they were purchased from a registered business.
• Freshwater fish, salmon, trout and char are not subject to the export quota.
• The quota applies to everyone, including Norwegian citizens.
• If the quota is exceeded, the quantity of illegal fish may be confiscated.
• The customs service performs inspections to ensure fish are not exported in breach of the order.
• It is permitted to export a whole trophy fish for taxidermy, etc. The quota rules do not prevent the export of single whole fish larger than 15 kg in addition to the quota.

The fishing authorities recommend restraint is exercised in relation to fishing tourism.

You can read more about the rulkes and regulations here:

http://www.fisheries.no/management_control/Regulatory-measures/quotas/Fishing_tourism/

If you have a foreign boating licence this will be valid, provided it has information in English. In addition you need a print of the syllabus for comparison with the Norwegian standards for the boating licence.

The punishment for operation a boat without the above mentioned licence carries an on the spot fine of 5000 NOK, and the loss of the right to obtain a boating licence for one year.

- We will not stop anyone to check (for a licence), but anyone stopped by the harbour Police will be checked for necessary papers, and we will talk with many. If the are under 30, and do not have a boating licence, they will be reported, said Superintendent Roar Isaksen of the Harbour Police to the Norwegian boating magazine “Båtliv” before the weekend. (VG)

The boat is an open 16″ thing with a 25hp Mercury at the stern, and it being brand new, we took it easy out to the mark. The outside of Arnøya, a small island off Harstad. The mark is known to yield red fish, saithe and cod.

My rod of the day…well, it is my only boat rod, was an el-cheapo Ron Thompson Steelstick 30lb rod mated to the very same Ambassadeur 7000i C3 that I purchased to go with my surf rod last summer. I figured if a Swede could haul up a 200+ kg halibut on a reel like that, it would be good enough for a few dinner sized cod.

Fishing buddy Torstein and captain of our mighty vessel on the other hand figures that using a fishing rod from a boat is something only Swedes, German tourists and cafe latte drinking souterners do, so he opted for the good old hand line on a fishing wheel.

The terminal tackle for both of us was the good old silver Norway pirks with a few gummimakk up the line. My Norway pirk was however a 400 gram from Ron Thompson, while Torstein was using the original 750 gram pirk from Sølvkroken.

Arriving at the mark we did not hesitate to chuck in our tackle. And after 5 minutes there was the familiar steady tug of a cod. Now there was only the matter of pumping the fish to the surface. The cheap rod did a good job at it. An the reel performed quite well. And soon we were able to lift in a 7-10lb cod. It was also the first fish of the boat, my first of the year, and the best fish I have taken since I took up fishing again last summer. To bad it was the only cod we got on this trip.

The next fish was the captains, a baby Cusk. And soon there after it was my turn to haul aboard. That was my very first of that species so right then size did not matter. And when after 5 more minutes I hauled in a dinner sized member of that familly, I was quite happy.

But now there was no more bites. So we moved further out, and we were soon into cusk again. Then I had a nice coalfish, and a pollach. While Torstein hauled in a couple more baby Cusk. But by now we could see snow clouds approaching, so we headed for shore. We had enough for dinner anyway.

In the deeps of the fjords of Lyngen, Norway, a fjord well known among fishing enthusiasts from all over Europe for it’s huge cod and halibut, a different kind of monster lurk beneath the blue waves. More and more fishermen are reporting that they are catching codthat can’t be described otherwise than that they are freaks.

The monsters are recognized by their deformed mouths, bent neck and sometimes abnormal growth on the head. Tests by the Norwegian Institute of Marine Research shows that the monster cod may be a result of intensive fish farming methods.And when the first pictures of the deformed fish arrived at the institute in November 2009, they where at first withheld from the public.

Meanwhile, commercial fisherman Odin Russenes, a man with 40 years of experience fishing  in the Lyngenfjord and Storfjord says in an interview with Norwegian TV channel, NRK,  that every third cod cought in the fjord is deformed, and other local fishermen is claiming that they have cought as much as 5000 deformed fish.

Odin Russenes also ads that they started catching deformed cod at the same time as the cod fish farms was established in the fjord 10-15 years ago, while adding that the wild fish now shuns the fjords where the fish farms are established.

The local fish farmers however are denying accusations that the monster cod has run away from their facilities in the fjord.
- When I say that it is not our fish that have ran away, it is because we have the best fish in the market. We do not have deformed fish, the CEO of Lofitorsk, Dag Hansen says to Nettavisen

But now the freak fish is spreading. Angler Per Pedersen (72) says to NRK that he has been fishing since WWII hand have never seen anything like what he cought the other day. Last Wednesday he was fishing in Straumfjord in Nordreisa, when i pulled a cod reminding him of the monsters of Kåfjord and Lyngenfjord.

Meanwhile the fish farms continue to wreck the fjords of Norway. At the moment the problem of salmon lice is high on the agenda of the Norwegian authorities…well as long as the pressure for them to do so is on from the media. The thing is that the minister responsible, Lisbeth Berg-Hansen is herself a big owner in fish farming. But while we wait for the ignorant, the corrupt and the arrogant fools that run the show in this country to take action…leave the farmed fish at the supermarket!

Se other articles about the ruining of the fjords:

They Poison our Fjords

The Fjords are Broken

Photos by Fiskeridirektoratet

From January 1st, 2010 the regulations regarding minimum sizes for salt water fish will apply to sports and tourist fishing in Norway.

All sport fishers should therefore study the minimum size that apply in good time before the next fishing trip. The regulations can be found bellow.

Mackerel and Saithe exempted
Mackerel that is caught with hooks or nets and saithe for your own consumption or for use as bait is exempted from the regulation of minimum size. This will among other things mean that children’s sport fishing from or near the shore will not be hindered by the new regulations.

Undersized fish must be released
If you are unlucky and catch undersized fish, you shall carefully unhook it, and release it into the sea again. If the fish is dead, or it is obvious that it will not survive, you can however, bring it home and eat it.

Targeted fishing for undersized fish may be punished, but the main target of the new regulation is not to punish people. The introduction of minimum sizes is to change the sport fishing habits, so that one to a lesser degree will catch small fish.

However, fishing for undersized saithe and mackerell to be used as bait, or for own consumption is still legal. This is mainly not to undermine childrens access to and joy of fishing.

Adjust your fishing so that you do not catch undersized fish.
The Norwegian Directorate of Fisheries is appealing to all fishermen to adjust your fishing with the thought of avoiding the catch of undersized fish. Good measures could be increased net mesh sizes, increased hook sizes or move your fishing activities to other areas.

——–

CHAPTER IX. MINIMUM SIZES AND MEASURES TO LIMIT CATCHES OF
FISH UNDER THE MINIMUM SIZE

Section 43.  Minimum sizes

It is prohibited to catch fish below the following sizes:

1.  Halibut  80 cm

2.  Cod
a) north of 64˚N  47 cm
b) south of 64˚N  40 cm

3.  Haddock
a) north of 64˚N  44 cm
b) south of 64˚N  31 cm

4.  Hake  30 cm

5.  Plaice
a) in the area delimited in section 3, items 1, 2 and 3 (outside the
Skagerrak)  29 cm
b) in the area delimited in section 3, item 4 (the Skagerrak)  27 cm

6.  Witch  28 cm
7.  Dab  23 cm
8.  Lemon sole  25 cm
9.  Sole  24 cm
10.  Turbot  30 cm
11.  Brill  30 cm
12.  Megrim  25 cm
13.   Whiting  32 cm
14.   Flounder  20 cm

15.  Eel
The fishing of Eel is prohibited.

16.  Saithe
a) north of 62˚N  45 cm
b) south of 62˚N   40 cm
c) when fishing for saithe using purse seines, the following minimum
sizes apply:
−  in the area north of the southernmost point of Lofotodden and from
there bearing due west, the mainland side of the Lofoten Islands and
further inwards to the head of the Ofotfjord with the adjoining fjords.
In open sounds on the mainland side of the Lofoten Islands and in
the Ofotfjord, the area is delimited by the following lines:
True west from Sund lighthouse in the Sundstraumen, true west from
Grænvika lighthouse in the Nappstraumen, true west from Lyngvær
north lighthouse in the Grimsøystraumen, true west from
Digermulen lighthouse in the Raftsundet, true east from Lødingen
lighthouse in the Tjeldsundet, and true west from Ramnesodden in the Ramsundet.  42 cm
−  between Lofotodden as described above and 62˚N  40 cm
−  in the area between 66˚33’N and 62˚N
The Directorate of Fisheries may decide that the minimum size of 35
cm shall cease to apply when it is calculated that 3000 tonnes of
saithe under 40 cm in length has been fished in this area in a particular regulatory year.  35 cm
−  South of 62˚N within four nautical miles of the baselines  32 cm

d) When fishing for saithe for personal consumption, the following
minimum size applies throughout the country 32 cm

17.  Spiny dogfish  70 cm
18.  Greenland halibut  45 cm
19.  Angler (monkfish) when gill-netting  60 cm
20.  Redfish (Sebastes mentella)  32 cm
21.  Mackerel  30 cm

22.  Herring caught in the area delimited in section 3, item 4 (the
Skagerrak), with the exception of Norwegian fjord herring caught less
than two nautical miles from the baselines  18 cm

23.  North Sea herring  20 cm
24.  Norwegian spring-spawning herring  25 cm
25.  Trondheimsfjord herring   23 cm

Capelin
a) North of 62˚N  11 cm
b) In the fisheries zone around Jan Mayen  12 cm

27.  Shrimps    6 cm
28.  Norway lobster  13 cm
29.  Crabs  13 cm
30.  Crabs along the stretch of coastline from Rogaland to the border with
Sweden 11 cm

31.  Iceland scallop in the counties Nordland, Troms and Finnmark  6.5 cm
32.  Lobster  25 cm
33.  Red king crab in an area in eastern Finnmark where catches are
regulated by quotas   13.7 cm
34.  Great scallop  10 cm

Section 44.  Measurement of fish

(1) The length of fish shall be measured from the tip of the snout to the end of the tail
fin.

(2) The length of spiny dogfish shall be measured from the tip of the snout to the
posterior edge of the upper tail lobe.

(3) The length of lobsters and Norway lobsters shall be measured from the tip of the
rostrum to the posterior edge of the middle swimming appendage.

(4) Shrimps shall be measured from the anterior edge of the eye to the posterior edge
of the telson.

(5) Crabs shall be measured across the greatest breadth of the carapace.

(6) Iceland scallops shall be measured through the longest diameter from the hinge to
the opposite edge of the shell.

(7) Great scallops shall be measured along the greatest length of the shell.

(8) Red king crabs shall be measured from the inner end of the eye socket to the
hollow in the posterior edge of the carapace.

(9) Notwithstanding section 43, items 27, 28 and 32, the carapace length may also be
measured for shrimps, Norway lobsters and lobsters. The carapace length for shrimps
(1.5 cm), Norway lobsters (4 cm) and lobsters (9 cm) shall be measured from the
posterior edge of the eye socket to the posterior edge of the carapace, measured along
the longitudinal axis of the animal.

Section 45.  Exceptions from the provisions on minimum sizes

(1) The minimum sizes prescribed in section 43 do not apply to fish for personal
consumption. However, this exception does not apply to lobsters and great scallops.

(2) The minimum sizes prescribed in section 43, item 16, do not apply to saithe
caught for private use as bait. The Directorate of Fisheries may in special cases grant
exemptions relating to catches of saithe for use as bait by others.

(3) The minimum size prescribed in section 43, item 21, does not apply to fishing
with nets and hooks, nor to mackerel caught by seining and stored in lock seines and
that is to be used for human consumption.

(4) In the area delimited in section 3, item 4 (the Skagerrak), the minimum size
prescribed in section 43, item 21, applies only to mackerel to be used for other
purposes than human consumption or bait.

(5) The Directorate of Fisheries may in special cases grant exemptions from the
provisions relating to minimum size for mackerel and eels (yellow and silver eels).

Only trouble was, that most of my tackle was gone. Most of it left at our house in Thailand. And I was more or less broke after moving the familly to Norway and getting us a roof over head and a car to fart about in, so if anyone in the family was getting any tackle it would be the kids and my wife. I did manage to find some cheap Okuma reels and rods for them.

In the tackle box
I still had my Shimano Beastmaster UL165 and Okuma Force FE15 to have a go at the lake trout with. Else there was my 30 year old Tjøstheim 600N, a 9′ rod for 10-50gram lures. Excellent rods, that are not made anymore. But you will still find them in use all over Norway. I had a good reel for that. A Shimano Super GT-RA 4000. And a spare reel. My old ABU Cardinal Black Max 5000. Else I had a good supply of spinners, flies, floaters and sinkers for lake fishing. So that’s were I started.

The Trout
Not to far from home is a nice little lake. It does not have very big fish. But there is plenty of it. Important when you bring a ten year old that never have seen a trout. His brother was also keen to fish. And while my wife is not all that enthusiastic about fishing, she loves to eat the result to the degree that she will tag along, and make everything ready to barbecue over an open fire, Thai style.

Anyway, this lake is ovepopulated with undersized Trout. So generally we keep everything we catch here. The first day we had about 20 trout between the four of us. Most of them on my ultralight Shimano Beastmaster UL165 rod. It can fish lures from 1-7 grams, and I use Blue Fox “Vibrax” size “O” – 3 gram silver spinners. Guarranteed to land you trout. And with ultralight equipment like this even small trout is fun.

The wife did also have a go, and caught several of these frying pan sized trout using my old Tjøstheim 600N rod and  Shimano Super GT-RA 4000 paired up with a floater and fly combo.The rod and reel was perhaps overkill on these fish, but that’s a fairly normal fishing style here.

Most people only have one or two rods, that is used for everything from Salmon fishing in the rivers with lures or worm and sinker, trough trout fishing with floaters and flies, to shore fishing for cod and saith along the fjords.

Shore fishing mania
So when a couple of friends, Robert and Torstein asked me to come shore fishing at Stornes in Toppsundet, a mark that earlier has yielded huige cod and saithe, wolf fish, and Halibut, the old Tjøstheim rod was what I grabbed.

I did not know then that for the rest of the summer, shore fishing would develop into mania. It was something I had not done much of is since I was a boy. For 20 years I have had an absolute passion for ultra light spinner fishing for trout. Not giving thought for what may lurk under the surface of our fjords. As it would happen, my mate Tortein brought a along a DAM surf rod. I was intrigued by the long rod. At 14′  feet it was almost twice the length of my Tjøstheim.

We got very little fish on this trip. But a few days later we returned. But again, no fish…until I got a totally new species for me on my Tjøsteheim rod, using a 28 gram Stingsild lure: A Toby!

It was promptly cut in half. I wanted to try bait fishing. Something I had never done in salt water. I took the treble hook off one of my stingsild lures, and treaded half a toby on, using the rest of the lure as sinker on a paternoster tackle. And five minutes later, I hauled in a 3 kilo (6,5 Lb) cod. A new passion was born.

New Rod and my first bait casting reel
The next day I was the owner of a 14,5 foot Ron Thompson Armageddon Surf rod. And was reading all I could about shore fishing, not to mention tackle. I could not afford to by a new reel for it. But pressed the ABU Cardinal Black Max 5 into service on the surf rod.
And while casting lengths was not that great, this sturdy reel did not let me down. And some more cod was the result. My friend Torstein came to the rescue however, and gifted me his 15 year old ABU Ambassadeur as he was getting a new reel for himself.

The old Ambassadeur 6500 CS Rocket was in near mint condition. It just need a new line, and some internal parts replaced that where worn down after 15 years of use  by Torstein and it was like new again.

The 6500 CS Rocket was a breeze to master. Despite not having any brakes apart from the mechanical one adjustment of the end caps. I did not know it was suposed to have brake blocks. Yet I had doubled my casting distance…well…when I put it on my old Tjøstheim rod, and casting my favourite lure for cod and saith…the Stingsilda lead lure.

Upgrading
But it was soon clear that I would need a second bait caster. Not because I could not use the Ambassadeur 6500 CS Rocket on my surf rod. But because I loved casting it so much that it was never on it.  Lets face it. Bait casting is a drag. You bait up, cast out and then…wait.

That’s too little going on for someone who has spent the last 20 years playing with spinners on ultralight tackle. So when I had some extra money coming in, I was in luck and found a good deal on a ABU Ambassadeur 7000i C3 and ABU Workhorse 2 salmon rod for lure weights 20-60 grams.

While I did not have much confidence in the rod. I looked on it as a free bee, it would prove top be a casting machine. Completely parking my old Tjølstheim rod. The plan was to mate it with the 6500 CS Rocket, while the 7000i C3 reel would go on the Ron Thompson Armaddeon Surf rod.

Mackerel here?
The season wore on. But the big fish was not to be seen. But I did get a few surprises. I had never seen a mackerel up here, until I got 9 of them on a single trip. All in the 1 kilo (2 lb) class. All caught on the ABU Workhorse 2 rod. I was happy. Should be good bait for the surf rod. However I did not reckon with my wife…

She is from Thailand. And consider just about everything I use for bait, a delicacy. So before I even had the chance to use my mackerel for bait, she had eaten it all!

Well, she did make an amazing fish soup out of it, that even my grandmother approved of. So for the rest of teh season, I used king prawns from the supermarket as bait. But most of the time it was tiny 1 kilo (2 lb) codling that took the bait.

Autumn
This continued into the autumn season. The biggies where nowhere to be seen. On the lures I must have taken up hundreds of baby saith and the surf rod continued to yield little but tiny codling.

Then in September, at Stangnes. A land fill into the sea, I got one decent sized pollack and 5 minutes later a nice coal fish. That was it really…until one cold Saturday in October, the bait alarm on my reel screamed, and the Ron Thompson Rod bent over…only to explode into pieces. What I had on I will never now.

The rod was replaced a week later by a Fenwick Seahawk surf rod. But by now the oomph had gone out of me. There was a few more trips yielding yet more baby codling. And by mid November…have not had a line in since then. Partly because by now it’s deep cold up here way north opf the arctic circle, and part because I have no inspiration for fishing it would seem.

What will 2010 bring?
That is until now, as my wife gifted me with this for x-mas. It’s an ABU Garcia Ambassadeur REVO S. I promise a comprehensive review as I have not found much about this reel online. Reviewers seem to concentrate on it’s more shiny siblings, the REVO STX and SX.

I just need a good sea-trout rod in the 5-20 gram range to marry it with, and in march/ april I’ll be off allong the sandy beaches wading in the freezing arctic waters for sea-trout. That should be fun.

And then my fishing buddy and old friend Torstein has announced that he is in the market for a boat in the new year. So I will need a proper deep sea rod and reel as well. 2010 season here I come!

It is important to maintain and strengthen cod stocks that spawn locally. Coastal cod is important for the ecological systems along the coast and is also the basis for a large part of coastal fishing. The main challenge remains to achieve a regulation that reduces the extraction of coastal cod while at the same time enabling the maintenance of traditional fishing and industry activity along the coast. http://www.regjeringen.no/en/dep/fkd/Press-Centre/Press-releases/2008/protective-measures-for-norwegian-coasta.html?id=541147

It’s all well and good. But what the regulations do not mention with a word, is the catastrophic situation for coastal fish that the Norwegian fish farm industry have created in our fjords.  The norwegian salmon farms have at any given time 350 million individual salmon in it’s farms.

This represent a paradise for salmon lice. Who reproduce at rate of 30 a day. These lice drift with the coastal currents for up to 300 days. This cloud of up to 2 billion lice is what meets the smolt (young salmon, going out in the sea from the rivers). If any of them succeed in getting less than the 8 lice it takes to kill them, it would be like winning the lottery. Research from outer Sogn conducted in the 90′ies showed that 90% of the smolt dies due to salmon lice.

Salmon lice in itself do not pose a direct threat to coastal cod though, but the way they now have to treat the salmon to get rid of the salmon lice is a danger to all life in the sea, as they do try to treat the salmon with medication. But the lice is now resistant in several places. So the use stronger chemicals. Among them Ektoban. Ektoban can potentially destroy the ecosystem along our coast. But this fact they are trying to blanket out.

Ektoban contains the pesticide teflubenzuron added to the salmon feed. This stuff is extremely potent that as low a concentration as 8ppb (part per billion) is enough to kill both crustacean larvae and animal plankton. Yup folks…the food wild fish in the fjords lives of.

In clear text this means that 8 grams of it in 1000 cubic meters of water is enough to give a lethal doze for lobster, crabs, prawns and crustacean larvae, etc.

An average fish farm will have to use 100Kg per de-licing, and so far 48 farms have started using it.

What this will mean for fish catches ion the coming years nobody knows. And some worry about the health risks for consumers of fish products because of the formation of poison metabolites. Something that is kept quiet of course.

As if that is not enough, an average fish farm is also releasing an enormous amount of  pollution straight into the fjords. In fact, one farm is releasing the same amount of sewer alone to equal that of a typical Norwegian town. Except this sewer goes straight into the sea…untreated.

Coastal fishermen are already reporting that entire fjords are completely devoid of fish life. Common for them all is that they contain fish farms.

As one commenter to an article in the online version of the local newspaper “Nordsalten” said:

Is it modern and correct that the bottom of the fjord should be covered with a thick layer of sludge and excrement from the fish farms so that fjord cod, coastal cod and skrei have run away long ago? Is it alright since we can not see it from the shore? Is okay that the Ministry of Fisheries have removed anchor sites from the sea maps because the farms will be there now. Is it okay to introduce fish farms in spawning areas for coastal cod that are protected from fishing and that fishermen in it’s day was chased out of?
In Øksfjord the fishermen themselves asked to stop the shrimp trawling to save the ecological diversity in the fjord. Now the fish farmers have taken over the entire fjord without a sincle exploration of the consequences. What on earth is it that makes the politicians and the authorities give permission for this?

I leave it at that…

The result are clear. This years salmon season has been branded a catastrophe in the Norwegian sport fishing community. For the 2010 season salmon rivers in entire counties will probably be closed next year as the number of fish ready to spawn in some rivers are down to a hand full.

The situation is even more dire for the sea trout. Unlike salmon, that goes into the open sea, the sea trout remain in the fjords trough the winter months. And is simply killed off by the shere number of salmon lice. They have no chance of surviving in a fjord system where the bio-mass is not doubled or tripled by the fish farms. They hold 10-12 times the number of fish than the eco-system in the fjords can sustain.

At the same time, the industry is systematically under reporting the number of lice per fish held in their farms. And despite Norwegian law saying that if there is more than 1 salmon lice per fish in a farm. The fish must be destroyed, little or nothing is being done. Indeed the Norwegian Food Safety Authority, the agency responsible for enforcing the law, has been reported to the police by an environmentalist organisation for failing to enforce the laws set there to protect our food. they have the means to order the slaughter of infected fish. But so far have only fined one fish farm. This while one of every four fish farms is heavily infected with lice.

The problems our fjords are facing is not ending with wild salmon and sea trout being wiped out in front of our eyes. Hundreds of thousands of farmed salmon, trout and cod have escaped from the farms this year. In some rivers more than 50% of the salmon cought are farmed salmon.

As for the farmed cod, they are running away as fast as they put them in the fjord based farms. Fishermen are catching more and more of these. At the same time the wild coastal cod stock is collapsing all allong the coast. Overfishing has to take its part of the blame. But when we know that one single fish farm, is poluting the water as much as an entire small town. And we are here talking about feed, medicine, and excrement from the fish that goes untreated, straight into the sea, it can not exactly be of much help for the cod and saithe in our fjords.

You may say that wild fish will do this too.  But when a fjord holds 10-12 times the bio-mass it would normally sustain, anyone except the fish farming industry, would acknowledge that this is a problem.

This will spell doom for the next generation of salmon that will leave the rivers in april to venture out into the open sea. Not many of them will return to spawn unless we can clean the fjords of the salmon lice. Meanwhile the lice is exterminating our stock of seatrout. Indeed the yearly national seatrout fishing competition arranged by the Norwegian Association of Hunters and Anglers have been cancelled this year du to the dire situation for our sea-trout.

So do not expect that the beutiful fjords of  Norway to give you much of a sportsfishing adventure in the future. You will have to settle for a good view…well…that will be broken too, when the new high voltage cables the plan to stretch across our most beutiful fjords get built in a few years. So if you wan’t the sight of a beutiful fjord in the future…go somewhere else. Ours are broken both above and bellow the surface.