Updated 11.15am - Activists stand by their claim

Allegations that fish farm operators had installed an extra cage at St Paul's Bay in violation of an agreement with the government were false, a spokesman for AJD Tuna has said. 

Activists yesterday said that a ninth tuna cage had been installed in waters off St Paul's Bay, and pointed to a Planning Authority agreement which set a limit of eight cages in the area. 

But in a statement issued this morning, AJD Tuna said that the extra cage visible in photos provided by activists was a "runner cage" which was used to pass fish into carry over cages "in an operation that was supervised by the Department of Fisheries". 

Of the nine cages visible, only three contained carry over fish, the AJD spokesman said, with a further five having no nets attached. 

The spokesman said that AJD Tuna was in the process of repairing rings damaged during the October storms. One such damaged ring had been fixed last week at Fekruna Jetty and towed back out on Friday so as "not to be an inconvenience to the public during the weekend". A similar repair is planned for today. 

Both St Paul's Bay local council and the Fisheries Department had been informed about the repairs being undertaken, the spokesman said. 

Activists subsequently contacted the Times of Malta to stand by their claims that operators were in breach of an agreement with the government. 

"If anything, operators should have informed the Planning Authority, which is responsible for enforcement and with whom the operators signed their unilateral declaration," one said.

Activists said they had contacted the Planning Authority and filed a complaint asking the PA to look into the issue. 

Activists and fish farm operators have been at loggerheads since last summer, when complaints about foul-smelling slime reaching local beaches rose to a crescendo. 

Following a public outcry, the Planning Authority opted to revoke 10 fish farm operator permits, giving them until the end of 2016 to relocate cages to a special aquaculture zone further offshore.  

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