Aquaculture Emergency Procedures Plan

Purpose. Sets the response to emergencies that threaten stock, people or the environment at the sea farm and hatchery, including low dissolved oxygen, harmful algal blooms, extreme heat, storms, net failure and escape, mass mortality, disease and power or system failure.

1.Activation

Any worker who observes a trigger condition must tell the leading hand or the hatchery shift leader immediately, who must tell the Sea Farm Manager or Hatchery Manager. The manager activates the plan, names an incident controller and starts the incident log in the Farm Stock and Water Quality Log. The General Manager must be told within one hour of activation.

2.Low dissolved oxygen and heat

Triggers are dissolved oxygen below five milligrams per litre at any cage or a sustained temperature above the health plan limit. Feeding must stop across the site, cages must not be crowded or handled, net cleaning must stop, and aeration or oxygenation equipment must be deployed to the worst affected cages first. Readings must be taken hourly until conditions recover, and mortalities counted and removed as soon as it is safe.

• Stop feeding and handling
• Deploy aeration to worst cages first
• Hourly readings until recovery
• Count and remove mortalities

3.Harmful algal bloom

On advice of a bloom from the regulator or from farm observation, sampling must be sent to the laboratory, oyster harvest must stop until the lease is reopened, feeding must be reduced, and cage stock must be monitored for gill damage. Harvest of kingfish must be assessed with the veterinarian before it proceeds.

4.Storm and net failure

When the forecast exceeds the operating limits, boats must be secured, cages checked for mooring and net integrity, and crews withdrawn from the water. After the storm, nets must be inspected for holes before feeding resumes. Any escape must be reported to the aquaculture regulator within the time in the licence and recovery attempted where lawful.

5.Mass mortality and disease

Mortality above the trigger in the health plan requires the affected cage to be isolated, samples taken as directed by the veterinarian, the regulator notified where the disease is notifiable, and mortalities removed and disposed of through the approved contractor. Movements between cages and sites must stop until the veterinarian advises.

6.Hatchery system failure

Loss of power, pumps or oxygen in a recirculating system activates the backup generator and oxygen supply automatically. The shift leader must confirm the backup is running, check every tank within fifteen minutes, start manual aeration where needed and call the on-call technician. Stock density must be reduced if the failure lasts more than four hours.

7.People and environment

In every emergency the safety of workers comes before stock. No one enters the water or works cages alone during an emergency. Spills to water must be contained and reported. After every activation the plan must be reviewed within two weeks and the lessons recorded.