A fishy business for the GR Dam

GEORGE NEWS - The public recently had opportunity to comment on the draft environmental impact assessment report (DEIAR) for George Municipality's rezoning application of the land at the Garden Route Dam.

According to the DEIAR, a university precinct, housing and commercial waterfront are being envisioned. The commercial waterfront already received environmental approval.

However, George Herald has heard rumours of some alternative proposals being made to increase the development options.

Among these is an extensive floating caged fish farm being proposed on the dam, to be operated by an emerging company, Eden Aqua Fish Farm (EAFF).

Investors have surfaced to provide the finances on condition that they can also establish a fish processing factory and smoking facility.

Vera Salmonoid, spokesperson for the Garden Route Chamber of Businesses, told George Herald they would be interested in reeling in the ideas about a possible fish farm and factory as the establishment of new businesses is essential for local economic growth, especially where food production is concerned.

"This type of business has the potential to create a substantial number of permanent jobs."

Fish type

Various options are under investigation as to what species of fish would be best farmed in the dam, taking into account the water quality, temperature, available feed sources, growth rates and the rate of waste excretion.

At this stage under consideration are brown or rainbow trout, bass, tilapia (bream) or piranha. It may be that two or three fish types are selected, depending on summer or winter. Piranha have the advantage that they are not easily stolen as they can eat people alive at a rapid rate.

Ryan Pisscatau, a fish feed specialist and advisor to Eden Aqua Fish Farm, says a future scaled-up development of the floating fish cages is envisaged, "More cages are to be added as production expands."

However, some residents have already raised concerns about the smell and taste such an extensive fish farm would give to water from the dam. This may be from fish faeces on the dam floor or floating in the water.

"We don’t want our water tasting like anchovy paste," said Sandy Moor, a local food expert and pizza maker.

Aquaculture expert, Dr Dean Impspawn, is of the opinion that this can be overcome using modern filtration and vacuum techniques.

He also notes, "The key is not to overfeed the fish so as to minimise excretion and also to not use a sinking pellet so that the feed falls through the net cage before the fish can feed. This prevents the bottom-feeders such as galaxias species (Family: Obesepolitico) getting all the feed and the indigenous fish getting none," he says.

Staff at the George water treatments works are confident that they will recognise fishy smelling water as most are good fishermen and know the smell of bait and rotting fish.
Chief chemist at the treatment works, Rassie Bass, has aromatic solutions that "will mask fishy smelling water".

He says he uses it to wash his hands after a Saturday of handling red bait, old sardines and rotten mud prawns. "My wife can’t tell the difference when I get home. She has no idea that something fishy has been going on."

George Herald understands it is hoped that the residents in close proximity to the dam will not raise a stink about the proposed fish farm and factory, and cast their minds open to tails of new jobs, more protein and locally produced food.