SANTIAGO, Chile (Reuters) — A deadly algal bloom has hit Chile, which is the world’s second biggest salmon exporter.
Nearly 23 million fish have already died, and the economic impact from lost production is seen soaring to US$800 million, say industry and government sources.
There are so many dead fish that they could easily fill 14 Olympic-size swimming pools, said Jose Miguel Burgos, the head of the government’s Sernapesca fisheries body.
Unusually high ocean temperatures, largely the result of El Niño, have fueled the algal bloom that has affected 37 of the nearly 415 salmon farms operating in southern Chile. Most of the farms are in ocean enclosures or in estuaries.
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“Temperatures are 2 to 4 C above average for this time of the year,” Burgos said.
“There’s a lot of sunlight, a lack of rain and very mild winds, all of which are conditions for the micro algae to appear.”
He said the loss is likely equivalent to 15 to 20 percent of Chile’s total production for the year.
Producers cut their losses by converting the fish that can be saved into fish meal, while the fish killed by the algal bloom are not destined for human consumption.
