Fish escape incident reported at Kópasker fish farm in Iceland

An unfortunate incident occurred this summer at a land-based fish farm in Kópasker, resulting in the escape of up to 300 salmon fry into the ocean. This incident marks the third report made to the Icelandic Food and Veterinary Authority (MAST) in recent months.

On July 30, during a routine transfer of salmon fry from the Kaldavík facility, a mishap caused the vessel Ronja Fjord to leak, leading to the escape of the fish. The transfer was halted immediately upon detection of the leak, but it became evident that a significant number of fish had already reached open water.

In response to the incident, Kaldavík’s staff acted according to emergency response protocols and deployed nets to attempt to recapture the escaped fry. Unfortunately, after 13 hours of monitoring, no fish were caught in the nets.

This incident is part of a concerning trend, with MAST reporting multiple similar occurrences this summer. Earlier in May, nearly 5,000 salmon fry escaped from a facility operated by Samherji in Öxarfjörður due to overflow from a tank. Later that same month, additional fry escaped from an Arctic Smolt facility in Tálknafjörður. Reports indicated that safety measures at Arctic Smolt’s facility were inadequate to prevent such an incident.

The environmental implications of farmed salmon escaping into the wild remain uncertain, but it raises ongoing concerns regarding potential impacts on local ecosystems.