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Kenyir Lake set to be aquaculture hub
Tuan Azam Tuan Johan
Tasik Kenyir, came to existence in 1985 when rivers were blocked for the construction of the Kenyir Dam.
It is one of the world's biggest man-made lakes, holding 23.6 million cubic litres of water spanning over of 36,900 hectares of area.
Dotted by some 340 islands, that are actually tips of highlands and hill tops as well as waterfalls, rapids and rivers apart from being blanketed by lush tropical forests, the lake is indeed one of the nature's masterpieces.
Terengganu Fisheries Department Director Munir Mohd Nawi said with some 40 species of freshwater fish like Baung, Toman, Sebarau and Kelah, Tasik Kenyir is an anglers' paradise with some of the fishing enthusiasts coming from as far as Singapore.
CAGE FISH INDUSTRY
Munir said 2,800 hectares of area at the lake has been set aside for breeding fish in cages.
"In Terengganu, the aquaculture sector covers 162.95 hectares with 1,206 cages. The country's objective is to produce 600,000 tonnes of freshwater fish worth RM3.8 billion by the year 2010," he told Bernama.
He said for Hulu Terengganu alone, 238 farmers have ventured into breeding fish in ponds, concrete tanks and cages since 2004.
For Tasik Kenyir, the exclusive zone set aside for cage-fish rearing is at Sungai Como. Authorities have gazetted the area as a permanent food production park.
"On Terengganu's part, the state is aiming to produce 40,000 tonnes of freshwater fish by 2010," said Munir.
There are three fish breeders operating on commercial scale at Tasik Kenyir. Two have started with 40 cages while the other one is a company that only recently ventured into this industry.
Munir said Terengganu expects to produce about 10,000 tonnes of cage fish this year with the bulk, at some 8,000 coming from Tasik Kenyir.
BLOCKS AND PARTICIPANTS
Munir said the aquaculture project at the lake would be implemented based on block basis with each block having 200 cages and eight participants.
Each would take about one hectare of area with 0.6 hectare for breeding and the rest for water flow as a form of protection for the caged fish.
He said the lake's aquaculture project needs about RM70 million investment with the returns projected at RM50 million a year.
For sustainable resources, breeders are advised to adhere to the Aquaculture Farming Certification Scheme.
"By adopting good aquaculture standard and practises, it is hoped that the aquaculture project at the lake runs smoothly," he said.
Meanwhile corporate communications manager for Gabungan Saudagar Aquamarine Sdn Bhd (GSA), Manan Ngah, said the company has carried out research before venturing into the cage-fish industry at Tasik Kenyir.
"For beginners, the company operates 10 cages and had released some 20,000 Nile and Javanese tilapia fry.
The fry is expected to be harvested October this year, he said.
"More cages will be added, until reaching 50 in total at the cost of RM300,000," said Manan, who is also a music composer who had written and produced numerous Malay songs that became hits in the local scene.
He said the company initially is aiming to produce some 50 tonnes of tilapia fish a month for domestic consumption.
LONG-TERM PLAN
Manan said GSA's long-term plan is to have about 1,000 fish cages at the lake.
"This will need about RM1 million in capital. We plan to export the fish to the United States as well as European and West Asian Nations as freshwater fish like tilapia is popular in these countries.
"There, freshwater fish is considered first-class fish, unlike in Malaysia where people preferred marine fish," he said.
Meanwhile, a cage-fish breeder at Tasik Kenyir, Mohamad Chik, said he ventured into the industry a few months back with a capital of some RM100,000.
"I started with 20 cages of tilapia, patin, baung and keli and within the next few months, the fish would be ready for harvest,"said the 73-year-old man who plans to add another 20 cages for his project.
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