Sea Slime Drama Returns With Planning Application For More Tuna Pens In St Pauls Bay
An application has been submitted to the Planning Authority for four tuna pens to be relocated to Is-Sikka l-Bajda, in St Paul’s Bay from their former location in the south of the Comino channel. A local Facebook community called Stop The Slime has launched an appeal on social media asking the Maltese public to object against the relocation.
The group has warned that the new site will aggravate the sea slime issue – a problem which has been prevalent in recent summers. They believe the relocation will “result in a larger footprint of affected coastline,” and that even though “these tuna pens are slightly further offshore [it] will make no positive difference on the amount of slime, oil slicks and pollution which will blanket [Malta’s] coastline this summer.”
A ribbon of sea slime was spotted about a month ago off the Sliema coast, but the Environment and Resources Authority claimed it was natural foam. Maltese fish farm operators have also denied that the slime is a result of farming activities.
