Hundreds of people signed a petition against the alleged Hawks Sky fish farm, while the applicant promised to be a “good neighbor”.

The petition was created by the Bute Outdoor Swim Club, which is concerned about the impact of the Dawnfresh Farming fish farm on the landscape, land, water, tourism and industry of the island.

Teresa Nelson of the club, which has successfully fought past attempts to launch fish farms in the area, said: “We are trying to raise awareness of the waters around Bute. People for all time are accustomed to yachting, kayaking, swimming. Now here is another farm we will fight with. There are currently quite a few farms in this area. And they want another place in Loch Striven. If all current applications for fish farming are approved, the entire Clyde River right up to Glasgow will become a disaster zone. ”

Teresa believes more information is needed before an increase in the number of fish farms is approved in Scotland.

Liz Ren, a resident of Kilchattan Bay, made it clear that the locals did not welcome this proposal and stated: “We really need tourism in our village, we have a business that depends on it, vacations, etc. The rocks and the sandy beach will be polluted as currents bring feces from tons of fish to our doorstep. Our Old Embankment is in danger. This is the center of the village, and it is constantly used by swimmers, and not for the use of boats to transport fish farms. Kilchattan Bay does not welcome DawnFresh. ”

Protecting the fishery planning application, Dawnfresh environmental manager Peter MacDougall said: “One of the reasons Dawnfresh started working with the local community in Bute and around our other facilities is because we believe there is a big misunderstanding of how the fish farm is working.

While Dawnfresh understands concerns about tourism, the facts do not support the claim that the presence of the fish farm will have any negative consequences. ”