The recent increase in the number of dead tuna being washed ashore should be studied closely, according to Federation of Maltese Aquaculture Producers secretary John Refalo.

About three such fish a day are being removed by the Cleansing Department, mostly in the northern areas of the country.

Dr Refalo admitted when contacted he had not been aware of the problem and only learned about it through the report carried by this paper.

Fish farm owners had not reported any problems in recent weeks, he said.

He noted that it was useless attempting to understand what was causing the phenomenon if the fish were simply taken to the incinerator after being removed.

Fish farm owners did not report any problems

He suggested that, instead, a detailed report should be drawn up and a thorough investigation should be held.

“The first thing that needs to be done is to understand what is causing this recent spike. Do the fish found have hooks, which suggests fishermen could have dumped them? Do the fish have some sort of disease? These questions need to be addressed,” Dr Refalo said.

Without the necessary checks, he continued, it was difficult to say why the decomposed tuna were being washed ashore in such big numbers. There could be a number of reasons this was happening. The Cleansing Department said the numbers this year were much higher than in the past, despite the fish farms having moved further from the coast.

Dr Refalo said there were no indications suggesting that what was happening could be triggered by problems at fish farms.

“Mortalities in cages would be a major event and would have been reported immediately. That is why the tuna washing ashore need to be examined properly, because it is useless being hypothetical,” he said.