Recent complaints about sea “slime” polluting Malta’s east coast have been played down by the Environment Minister who described the number of incidents reported this year as being “within reason”. 

Josè Herrera was asked by Times of Malta on the recent spate of cases whereby large patches of what has been described as “slime” by the public and environmental groups was washed ashore along the Coast Road in Baħar iċ-Ċagħaq, St Julian’s and Sliema. 

While fingers were immediately pointed at the fish farm industry, the sector dismissed such claims saying it was not slime but naturally-occurring foam, which was the result of certain atmospheric and climatic conditions such as the first end-of-summer rain. The Federation of Maltese Aquaculture Producers backed its assertion on the grounds that it had tested various samples of this substance. 

However, last week the Environment and Resources Authority confirmed that last month a major fish farm was temporarily shut down after it was caught using a type of feed linked to the formation of this slime.

 This prompted the federation to hit out at operators not members of this alliance for adopting what it described as “unacceptable practices”.

Asked if the authorities had the situation under control, the Environment Minister said he was much more satisfied this year than in the recent past.  “Reforms, scrutiny and commitments taken by fish farm operators are yielding results,” Dr Herrera said.

Efforts to reform the sector were beginning to show

“The number of complaints received this year were within reason. Last year, they were not. The previous year they were a disaster,” he noted.

He added that the government’s efforts to reform the sector and raise standards in the fish farm industry were beginning to show. 

Dr Herrera pointed out that this task was entrusted to a commission headed by Neil Kerr, a former head of Cabinet at the European Court of Auditors. 

“In collaboration with Parliamentary Secretary Clint Camilleri, I am determined to make a super radical reform to improve standards and tighten controls which over the years had become lax,” the minister said. 

Dr Herrera also heaped praise on fishermen and the operators. They were very forthcoming, he said. 

Sea slime had plagued various beaches in recent years, prompting the fish farm operator’s lobby to commit to a series of self-regulatory measures to run during the summer months.