The arrival of alien fish in natural water sources, including rivers, canals and shrimp farms in Samut Songkhram and neighbouring provinces, is giving the Department of Fisheries a big headache.
ALL QUIET: The problem of 'pla mor si karng dam', or blackchin tilapia, has made life more difficult for the Thai seafood industry, already reeling from restrictions on fishing boats. PHOTOS: Chanat Katanyu
It is very difficult to eradicate the alien species, which can adapt well to its new environment.
Shrimp farmers filed a complaint with the department when they found pla mor si karng dam, or blackchin tilapia, had invaded their farms and eaten baby shrimps. The crisis this year damaged hit their business as well as damaged the ecosystem.
It's not a new problem. Panya Tokthong, who owns a 100-rai shrimp farm in Samut Songkhram province, said his income has dropped considerably after the intrusion of the aggressive alien species and more investment is required to clear all the fish from his farm -- a problem caused by human error which poses a grave threat to the ecosystem and one which is not fair to him, he said.
Mr Panya said when farmers first detected the blackchin tilapia in 2012 their arrival had minimal impact. But the problem has got worse and needs a speedy remedy.
He said the Department of Fisheries should offer a financial package to buy the fish and work closely with locals to get rid of the invaders as soon as possible, together with close monitoring to ensure that the situation is under control.
To avoid a crisis, Mr Panya said he has turned to feed snapper and crab to limit the risks, but the income from those sources is considerably lower than that stemming from shrimp, which is his main business to look after his family.
The blackchin tilapia invasion recently hit the headlines when media reported a severe outbreak at a shrimp farm in Phetchaburi province before it spread to Prachuap Khiri Khan and Chumphon provinces.
The Department of Fisheries also released 40,000 snappers to kill the invaders in the Phetchaburi River, hoping that this move would be an effective way to reduce the alien fish in the country.
DOING THEIR JOBS
Problem: Shrimp farmers filed a complaint with the department when they found 'pla mor si karng dam', or blackchin tilapia, had invaded their farms and eaten baby shrimps. Photo: NARONG SANGNAK/ EPA
Umaporn Pimolbutr, deputy chief of the Department of Fisheries, said the department is going to investigate the case of the alien fish outbreak in the environment and among shrimp farms in the provinces. She said measures are planned to limit the impact and control their spread to other areas.
Among the measures is a plan to buy the alien fish at a reasonable price, she said, pointing out that a heavy catch of the fish might be able to reduce their numbers.
Ms Umaporn suggested farmers should use nets to stop the fish from entering before pumping water from rivers or canals into their farmland. This simple method could cut the number of alien fish and reduce their impact on the farm environment. But in real life, farmers usually ignore this significant step.
"We need to use money from the Bureau of Budget to buy the alien fish, so it is important to have well-rounded information in order to get approval for the budget. And we are now doing it carefully," she said.
Ms Umaporn said that the blackchin tilapia are edible, but the department has no policy to promote or support the commercial trade of dangerous alien fish as this may cause more harm than good.
The department recently surveyed 567 shrimp farms in Samut Songkhram and Phetchaburi provinces, of which 501 are located in Amphawa district and 60 are in Ban Laem district in Phetchaburi province. The feedback showed that there are around 1,800 tonnes of blackchin tilapia on almost 58,000 rai of shrimp ponds in the two provinces.
A source said the department has been seeking the cooperation of shrimp farmers to destroy the fish to prevent them from getting back to the natural water sources. The source added that the Department of Fisheries is working with the Department of Land Development to use the fish to make fertiliser.
The source also said the department next week will work with local communities to conduct a survey of rivers and canals by using banned fishing equipment for the study, adding that he is going to seek a permit to use heavily destructive fishing gear in the survey so that the department can have strong valid information for evaluating the number of blackchin tilapia living in the area.
POINTING THE FINGER
WAITING GAME: Trade at the Mae Klong fish market in Samut Songkhram has been affected by the problem of alien fish.
In order to find the culprit, he said, it is quite difficult to point a finger at any party even though the department has records of a company which imported around 5,000 baby blackchin tilapia from Ghana in West Africa in 2010 for the purpose of species development.
"There is a large gap between the date of import and the outbreak period. This has made it difficult to pinpoint the wrongdoer. Although only one company sought a permit to import the fish, we don't know whether any illegal imports might also be the possible source of the outbreak," the source said.
He said that the company verbally informed the department that it had already destroyed the baby fish in a landfill after the experiment to develop the species failed, adding that the department did not pay a visit to the site to check whether the claim was true or not.
However to bring the situation under control, the department is going to add blackchin tilapia to the list of banned imports under the 2017 Fisheries Decree due to the danger it poses to young aquatic animals in both freshwater and saltwater environments.
Wrongdoers will be fined not more than 1 million baht, face a maximum one-year prison term, or both.
The department is going to ask the Office of Natural Resources and Environmental Policy and Planning to place the fish on a list of aggressive alien species.
Meanwhile, Tuenjai Deetes, of the Human Rights Office's subcommittee on community rights and the natural resources base, said that the human rights committee is going to submit suggestions to related agencies, including the department and the company dealing with the case, saying that the company should take into account strong concerns about business guidance on respecting, protecting and improving human rights by offering assistance to locals who have been suffering from the case.