The Aquatic Animal Alliance warns about the serious environmental risks of an octopus farm in the Canary Islands

By: Catalina Lopez, Director of the Aquatic Animal Alliance

The Aquatic Animal Alliance recently sent a report which warns the government of the Canary Islands in Spain about the serious environmental risks that the installation of an octopus farm in Puerto Las Palmas on the island of Gran Canaria would entail. The Nueva Pescanova company has requested an environmental permit from the local authorities, and the information provided by the company for this purpose was recently made public.

The plans to establish an intensive exploitation of a new species, the Octopus (Octopus Vulgaris) generates high concern due to the potential effects on the marine ecosystem surrounding the farm, as well as the community of the islands. The company does not clarify the methods and processes to avoid the filtration of potentially dangerous substances into the effluent or the concentration of ammonium, nitrite, nitrate and phosphorus, among other elements that can negatively affect the ecosystem.

Additionally, the most worrying aspect of the report is the lack of mention of the possible spread of diseases in the context of intensive exploitation. The company states that "In the case of the octopus, no relevant pathologies are yet known." However, previous studies have found that octopuses can suffer from up to 20 different pathologies, including Vibrio Cholerae, which causes the cholera disease in humans. The company does not specify any of these pathogens that can potentially be transmitted to marine wildlife or even humans. Likewise, it omits the risks of using potential treatment against these pathologies, such as antibiotics and antiparasitics, which can contribute to the growing crisis of antibiotic resistance.

Other environmental risks include the possible escape of octopuses from the farm to the ecosystem, which can generate negative interactions with the local fauna, and the transmission of diseases. This may also affect wild octopus populations, and therefore affect artisanal fishermen in the area who depend on this species for their livelihood.

The report sent to the authorities by the Aquatic Animal Alliance explores in much greater depth all the environmental risks associated with the approval of this construction.

Due to the substantial evidence that was provided to the government on the negative impacts that this project could have on the surrounding environment, we request that the government reject the environmental permit for the Nueva Pescanova octopus farming operation, given that there is not enough information provided by the company to execute this project.