Publication - FOI/EIR release

Discussion held between Fish Health Inspectorate (FHI) and Loch Durat Ltd: EIR release

Published: 19 November 2021
Directorate: Marine Directorate
Part of: Marine and fisheries, Public sector
FOI reference: FOI/202100244454
Date received: 29 September 2021
Date responded: 3 November 2021

Information request and response under the Environmental Information (Scotland) Regulations 2004

Information requested

Information relating to all correspondence and communications between the Fish Health Inspectorate (FHI) and Loch Duart Ltd with regard to the Clashnessie Bay salmon farm as may have occurred between March and August 2021.

On 6th October 2021, you modified your request to include September 2021 within the timescale detailed above.

Response

Attached is a copy of some of the information you requested. This includes communications between the FHI and Loch Duart concerning sea lice notifications and mitigation measures, mortality notifications and enforcement action in relation to sea lice.

An exception under regulation 11(2) of the EIRs (personal information) applies to some of the information requested because it is personal data of a third party and disclosing it would contravene the data protection principles in Article 5(1) of the General Data Protection Regulation and in section 34(1) of the Data Protection Act 2018. This exception is not subject to the 'public interest test', so we are not required to consider if the public interest in disclosing the information outweighs the public interest in applying the exception.

Some information, contained within the communications provided, has been redacted as ‘out of scope’ as this does not relate to the subject area of your request.

There are a number of communications which we hold which involve the submission of either sea lice or mortality information, the detail of which has been published on the Scottish Government or Scotland’s Aquaculture websites as detailed below. As no further information was provided or contained within those notifications they have not been included within the information being released in relation to thiresponse.

Some of the information you have requested is publicly available on either the Scottish Government website (https://www.gov.scot/collections/publication-of-fish-health-inspectorate-information/) or Scotland’s Aquaculture website (http://aquaculture.scotland.gov.uk/). Under regulation 6(1)(b) of the EIRs, we do not have to give you information which is already publicly available and easily accessible to you in another form or format.

As an element of clarification, I can advise you that the conditions of Enforcement Notice EN03 2021, issued on 10 September 2021, have been met. With respect to the activities undertaken by the Fish Health Inspectorate, no further enforcement action is pending in relation to Clashnessie Bay, at this time.

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