Joint UK-Irish aquaculture partnership Loch Long Salmon has secured planning permission to create the first semi-closed containment fish farm in Scotland in Loch Long, Argyll and Bute.
Representing £40 million (US$50 million) of investment, the Beinn Reithe application was called-in by the Scottish Government for determination and has been approved by Cabinet Secretary Shona Robison.
Semi-closed containment farming is already widely used in countries including Canada, Norway and the Faroe Islands.
Semi-closed containment farming systems look similar to conventional pens from above, but under the water they have an opaque, impermeable outer barrier that surrounds the fish net, with water drawn up and circulated from deeper in the loch. This removes the threat of sea lice and attacks by seals and allows the capture of waste to be brought ashore.
Loch Long Salmon said that the project will improve environmental and animal welfare standards, as well as strengthen the sector’s international competitiveness.
Loch Long Salmon plans to deploy five enclosures of 140 metres' circumference, with a biomass limit of 3,452 tonnes. This setup has been approved by the Scottish Environment Protection Agency because over 85 per cent of waste and uneaten food is collected internally at the bottom of the enclosure to be brought ashore and treated, thus reducing the environmental impact of the site.