SINGAPORE – Three fish farms located in the East Johor Strait have reported sightings of some oil patches near their farms on July 17, said the Singapore Food Agency on July 18.

The SFA told The Straits Times that it is working closely with these farms on their clean-up efforts, and will continue to provide assistance where needed.

“There are no food safety concerns thus far,” the agency added. “SFA will continue to monitor the situation closely.”

In response to queries from ST, Fish Farmers Association of Singapore (FFAS) president Daniel Tay said the oil patches were seen at around 7am on July 17 near Pulau Ketam, a ridge near Pulau Ubin in the East Johor Strait.

He explained that there are no concerns over food safety as the fish dived deep while the oil passed over, which means the fish in affected net cages did not come in contact with the oil.

“We are currently cleaning stains and scrubbing the nets, which will be disposed if we are unable to salvage them. The fish in these net cages will have to be transferred in that case,” Tay said.

The oil sightings come less than a month after at least two fish farms were hit by a fire on June 24, with one farm owner estimating that the damage had cost him about $120,000.

The cause of that blaze was suspected to be a lightning strike.

Tay said that there are many challenges associated with frontier livelihoods, including lightning strikes and oil spills, noting that there were four of these in the last decade.

“Public empathy is strong and we are encouraged to grow and support local markets,” he said.

ST has contacted the National Environment Agency for more information ab...