Tasmanian Salmonid Growers Association

June 2, 2016

1^st June 2016

Correcting Misinformation

In order to provide certainty to the communities of Orford, Spring Bay and Triabunna, Tassal responds to some misinformation which has recently been circulating regarding the company’s intention to develop a shore base, wharf and Salmon farm in the area. We want the local community to know that if you hear information from sources other than Tassal, and if you have a concern, please contact us directly and we will respond promptly.

As a publically listed company, Tassal is subject to strict information rules and guidelines set out by the Australian Stock Exchange with respect to reporting. The penalties for breaching these rules and guidelines are severe. Tassal undertake the necessary due diligence and care in every aspect of our public reporting. It is why we are also ranked globally the equal number 1 for Seafood in Sustainability Reporting as ranked by Seafoodintelligence.com.

Engagement has been undertaken by Tassal in Triabunna, Orford and Spring Bay Area and will continue

• First public discussion by Tassal CEO on radio August 2014
• Between August 2014 and present – formal and informal discussions with representatives of Seafood Industry sector groups (commercial and recreational)
• Meetings with Glamorgan Spring Bay Council (January and March 2015) and regular briefings with relevant staff, including the General Manager
• 2015 Seafest display (main focus of display was Triabunna By product plant, however open discussions with locals re plans at Okehampton Bay
• July 2015 – presentation to Probus club
• October 2015 – Tassal participated in careers day at Triabunna – Okehampton Bay plans openly discussed re job opportunities
• February 2016 – Display re Okehampton Bay plans at official opening of Triabunna By-product plant
• February 2016 – Stakeholder brochure (including maps and proposed timelines available in local outlets incl. Council Offices and on-line media) regarding Okehampton Bay lease)
• March 2016 – presentations and Q&A to Council staff, Triabunna By-product plant staff and Spring Bay Seafoods staff
• April 2016 – Seafest Stand and display, written response to Triabunna Orford Chamber of Commerce
• May 2016 – information display and invitation to GSB residents to Nubeena Information day
• 18 June 2016 – Planned Community Information Session, Community Hall – Triabunna.

Proposed Timeline of Works for Okehampton Bay lease

1. Shore base construction – 2016/17
2. IMTA* pilot – 2016/17
3. Marine infrastructure installation – 2017
4. Commercial salmon input – 2018

 NOTE: IMTA refers to *Integrated Multi-trophic Aquaculture or polyculture – ie the growing of Salmon, Mussels and Seaweed.

 Key Project Information

• There is a 165m jetty planned in Spring Bay (on Spring Bay Seafoods land access) – not Okehampton Bay. The site is immediately to the south of existing Spring Bay Seafoods wharf. It will be used by both Tassal and Spring Bay Seafoods.
• Tassal has no plans to develop a Salmon, Kingfish or any other finfish farm of any description in Mercury Passage or Marion Bay – this has been clearly communicated toall members of the public who attended the information session at Nubeena. Tassal understands and appreciates the importance of the amenity, recreational and social value of the area.
• Tassal has a Strategic Plan to 2030, together with a supporting plan for site development and we do not have any plans to develop the Mercury Passage shellfish lease for finfish farming. Okehampton Bay is a large sized lease and would produce between 8-10% of our annual production.  Investing in the Okehampton Bay site makes good business sense. This is not an unusually large investment for the development of a Salmon farming site.
• The Okehampton Bay lease is more than 7km from Spring Beach and more than 7km from Maria Island.
• The next sites we are developing will be exposed, off shore sites in our Tasman farming region.
• Tassal ensures that it will employ locally first, and invests in upskilling staff; mentoring and development will be an important part of the initial recruitment, where we will draw on our experienced staff skill base to provide on the job training.
• Zone 4 in Okehampton Bay is the only marine farming zone that provides for the culture of finfish within the Great Oyster Bay and Mercury Passage Marine Farming Development Plan: (http://dpipwe.tas.gov.au/Documents/GOBMP-MFDP-October-1998-%28Modified-May-2010%29.pdf).
• Tassal is piloting an integrated multitrophic aquaculture site (IMTA) in the Okehampton lease. This is an ecological approach to marine farming. Salmon, mussels and seaweed can be farmed alongside each other successfully.
• 28 pens are planned within Okehampton Bay – a mix of pen sizes being 120m and 168m in circumference, which equates to approx. 38m and 52m diameter, respectively.
• Tourism ventures currently operate successfully in conjunction with Tassal Salmon farming and we will be encouraging this interaction moving forward.
• Tassal does not grow Genetically Modified (GM) fish nor does it use GM organisms in feed.
• The fate of solid nutrients (faeces) is well understood by Tassal and the regulator. Tassal can have no visual impact outside their marine lease area.
• Tassal has established a broad scale water monitoring program to measure and potential changes to local and far field water quality. This program monitors the impact of dissolved nutrients on the surrounding water body.
• Salmon farms do not cause algal blooms and the recent algal blooms in Chile were the result of an unusual El Nino event. Unusual plankton events were recorded in many parts of the world. Farmed Salmon did die as a result of this bloom; Tassal conducts daily plankton monitoring and has an emergency response plan in place in the event of a harmful algal bloom.  To date we have not had to enact an emergency response and have very little mortality, across all our regions due to algal issues.
• Baseline environmental work is currently being undertaken – Tassal has independently commenced an extensive monitoring program in the area. This data has been used to establish an environmental baseline for water quality. To date 23 monthly sampling events have occurred across 5 sampling sites in the Mercury Passage.
• The temperature profile in Okehampton Bay is comparable to many of our other South East farming sites. We have collected multiple years of temperature data and have compared it with historical datasets this has demonstrated that Atlantic Salmon can be farmed successfully in the Okehampton Bay lease. Due to the infrastructure investment required, Tassal has gone through a very thorough due diligence process.

• Temperatures are comparable to our South Eastern farming (SE) sites
• Dissolved Oxygen (DO) is comparable to our SE sites
• Broadscale Environmental Monitoring Program (BEMP) data throughout SE showed same warming trend as Okehampton Bay last year
• Summer 2015/16 water temperatures (in discussion with CSIRO climate scientists) demonstrated a 1 in 100 year marine heatwave that affected all of the SE coast
• Water current speed and direction on the site is very desirable and better suited to modern farming practices than a number of our other farming sites
• The depth, current speeds and tidal movement indicates that this site will be very assimilative and easily compliant to existing benthic regulations.

Questions & Answers from Orford Chamber of Commerce

CONTACT TASSAL:

E: sustainability@tassal.com.au                 P: 03 62449011