The oyster farmer probably thought he was quiet, far from everything… This Friday, the authorities got their hands on sixteen tonnes of oysters raised in an illegal oyster farm in the Banc d’Arguin nature reserve, on the Arcachon basin. The operation was carried out under the authority of the Deputy Prosecutor of the Republic at the judicial court of Bordeaux specifies the prefecture of Gironde. The value of the seizure is estimated at around 100,000 euros.
Environmental disturbances
This park had been installed without any authorization in a very fragile area. “The installation of oyster farming structures outside the authorized areas causes disturbances to the environment (hydrodynamics, sediments) and the species likely to colonize it (eelgrass, filter-feeding bivalve molluscs, birds such as the red-headed godwit, the oystercatcher, Black-bellied plover, the interrupted collared plover, gulls and seagulls)”, specifies the prefecture in a press release.
Only three settlement zones are possible for oyster farming activities for a maximum cumulative surface of 45 hectares and for a renewable period of five years. Since 2018, 225 authorizations have been issued to 142 oyster farmers.
The goods were seized and the illegally implanted park will have to be dismantled within a limited time. The court will rule on the offender’s sentence and the fate of the seized products. He faces six months in prison and a fine of 30,000 euros.