The government of Norway has allocated 10m kroner (€994,828) to funding aquaculture research in the wake of a severe algae outbreak earlier this year.
The devastating outbreak of algae bloom in May saw millions of farmed salmon in Northern Norway die of suffocation, with the Norwegian Seafood Council estimating losses to Norway’s aquaculture of up to 2.2bn kroner (€218,993m) as a direct result. While algae bloom occurs naturally, this year’s bloom event was unexpectedly concentrated and persistent, killing eight million salmon in the Nordland and Troms regions in the space of a few days. Scholars theorised that the magnitude of the event, Norway’s worst algae attack in nearly 30 years, was exacerbated by warming ocean currents caused by climate change.
The aquaculture funding will be directed to measures designed to avert the more devastating impacts of similar outbreaks in the future, with surveillance systems to be implemented along the Northern coast of Norway. Closer observance and scrutiny of the health status of fish will mean that, in the event of further outbreaks of algae or disease, fish can be moved promptly to a non-contaminated location.
Announcing the aquaculture funding measures, Norway Seafood Minister Harald T Nesvik said: “We need to have better knowledge and be better prepared if future attacks occur, especially in the early stages of an algae bloom. The coastal areas offer great opportunities for employment creation and investment, so it is important that we try to protect them. The algal bloom in Northern Norway in the spring hit the aquaculture industry and the local communities hard; and a lot of money was lost.”
The government also announced a further 2.2bn kroner in funding for research and development in aquaculture technology and protection of Norway’s coastal waters. Minister Nesvik said: “We must be at the forefront of knowledge and the use of marine technology.”
