Offshore fish farms at risk from winter storms

Winter storms continue to pose a high risk to offshore fish farms and the threat of caged stock being released into the Atlantic.

Friends of the Irish Environment warned yesterday underwater inspections are not being conducted regularly on installations containing hundreds of thousands of farmed species.

Director Tony Lowes said the Department of Agriculture, Food, and Fisheries is continuing to refuse to release accident records from storm damage almost two years ago which led to the loss of 230,000 adult salmon at a fish farm in Gearhies in Bantry Bay, Co Cork.