Earlier this month, Forest Lake’s tilapia population took a significant hit after significant quantities of tilapia were seen floating dead in the water, contributing to the putrid smell emanating from the area.
A massive clean up has been done but the investigation as to how these fish died still continues.
Councillor Charles Strunk of the Forest Lake ward said that the Brisbane City Council has done a number of tests on the water quality. There is a strong suspicion that a large drop in temperature could have caused the tilapia to die.
Public Reaction
However, Pest Fishing Adventures (PFA) and the residents of the suburb are not convinced. They think that the health of the lake is also a big consideration. Although considered a pest fish, it is still important to know the cause of the fish kill in order to monitor the health of the lake and help maintain the ecological balance in the lake area.
In fact, following the incident, PFA is calling for the council to put more focus on tilapia. They also said that the city needs more organisations to get involved in raising awareness and removing this type of pest fish.
What The Council Is Doing
For now, Cr Strunk announced that the council will have someone visit the lake daily to properly monitor the situation.
The council classifies tilapia as a noxious fish. They have implemented a management strategy to manage this by:
- Spreading awareness about the impacts of pest fish on the natural environment and managing them
- Educating the local communities on the risks pest fish brings to the native biodiversity
- Providing support to research into biological controls and new innovations to manage pest fish
- Containing pest fish and preventing them infiltrating other bodies of water
- Managing pest fish by reducing the population density of established species where possible