Background to the Scottish Fish Farming Industry
Aquaculture is the culture of aquatic animals and plants in fresh, brackish or marine water environments.
Aquaculture in Scotland can be broadly spilt into three categories:
- Growing finfish in cages or pens
- Growing shellfish on the seabed, trestles, suspended on ropes or nets
- Growing seaweeds.
The bulk of marine aquaculture in Scotland is salmon and shellfish, chiefly mussel, production. Experimental cultivation of farmed salmon began in 1969 and has since developed into a substantial rural industry, with an estimated 8,000 jobs provided by salmon farming and related support industries, mainly in remote locations where alternative sources of employment are scarce.
Virtually all production takes place in the inshore waters of the west coast and the Western and Northern Isles, where the most favourable conditions for aquaculture are to be found. Alternative species, such as cod and halibut, are being grown in commercial quantities and organic farming is also on the increase.
Shellfish cultivation has seen an increase and developed into an industry producing around 3,200 tonnes of Pacific oysters and 4,300 tonnes of mussels in 2006 (FRS figures).
Seabed Rental
We have a statutory duty to obtain a return for the use of land within our ownership and so rental is due for areas of seabed used for commercial purposes, including aquaculture. For salmon farming the rental is calculated using a formula based on production.
The rent, which is subject to review every five years, has reduced over time in actual and real terms reflecting the decreasing market value of the final product and represents approximately just 1% of a farm’s gross turnover. Outer Isles farms (Outer Hebrides, Orkney and Shetland) receive a reduction to reflect the higher operation costs arising from their location.
For shellfish, rent is calculated on the basis of the equipment applied for and specified in the lease.
Important Changes to the Granting of Fish Farming Consents
On 7 March 2007 an order was approved by the Scottish Parliament that gave planning authorities statutory planning powers for aquaculture developments in marine waters.
The Town and Country Planning (Marine Fish Farming) (Scotland) Order 2007 came into force on 1 April 2007 and replaced the previous 'interim scheme' which had been in operation since the late 1990s. There have been changes in Orkney and Shetland too where applications for fish farms are now being made under the new scheme rather than the current works licence system.
Applications for new sites, or modifications to existing ones, should now be made to the relevant planning department, including the payment of a planning fee based on the scale of development. Wide consultations take place, and the environmental impact assessment regulations continue to apply.
If a site is approved then there will be a presumption that the planning consent will be granted without time limit, an important change to the current system where finfish sites go through a renewal process every fifteen years.
Applications made under the previous scheme, but where a decision was not made by 1 April 2007, will be considered under that scheme through to a conclusion. A cut-off date of 1 April 2010 will be set to consider these applications and any applications still with us on that date will be deemed to have lapsed.
Existing fish farms will be given permanent planning permission once they have been through a review process and they are found to be compliant. The review will primarily be to ensure that a farm has been properly assessed against environmental and nature conservation regulations. This process will be handled by the Scottish Executive directly and further details will be issued soon.
An important point about the new scheme is that the planning permission will be attached to the area of foreshore / seabed in question and will not be company specific. Where the foreshore / seabed is Crown owned then the right to occupy the site will be by means of a lease from The Crown Estate as landowner.
We welcome the new legislation as it will allow us to concentrate on helping support sustainable development of the aquaculture industry through continuation of our research and development projects, by highlighting best practice through The Crown Estate Scottish Marine Aquaculture Awards and supporting the Scottish Government's strategic objectives through, for example, our practical support for the Tri-Partite Working Group Project Manager.
Scottish Aquaculture Research Forum
The Ministers Aquaculture Strategy document published in April 2003 recommended the establishment of a new body to review marine aquaculture research priorities and to co-ordinate funding commitment from amongst its membership. This body is the Scottish Aquaculture Research Forum (SARF). The Crown Estate is a major contributor of funds to SARF.
Scottish Ministers announced the revision of the Aquaculture Strategy in 2007, and SARF is anticipated to remain a strong focus of the new strategy.
Other Aquaculture Research
The Crown Estate also supports a number of other aquaculture research projects through the marine research fund: aquaculture research. More information and reports available for downloading may be obtained from the marine research fund: aquaculture research page.
Further Information
For further information please email us at Enquiries.
For further information on our Scottish holdings, please visit our Scotland page.
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