The dumping of dozens of fish frames in a waterway has caused a stink, but does not appear to be illegal.
It is believed to have been tipped into the South Maroochy River near Vee Road, Yandina, after filleting, possibly last weekend.
A pile of them are stuck rotting in shallow water by the bank while other frames were witnessed moving slowly further out in a slow current.
The river near Vee Road is a popular spot for people with children who want to play or cool off in the stony shallows.
A Department of Agriculture and Fisheries spokesperson said it was not an offence to dump fish frames but urged fishers to think of others.
Fisheries suggests using fish frames for crab bait, disposing of them in council bins, keeping them for fish stock, freezing them to put out in the garbage or dump at sea on another trip, or using them for fertiliser.
A Yandina Fishing Club spokesperson who inspected the Vee Road site, recommended that people drop fish frames into tidal water only.
He was concerned that another club member had heard of fish frames having been dumped upstream closer to Wappa Dam in water that was not tidal.
“You need the movement of the water in and out to help the process,” he said.
The spokesperson said the South Maroochy was tidal up to the Yandina Caravan Park but it was not very considerate to dump the frames in an area well used by the public.
He expected crabs, eels and fish in the South Maroochy River would eat the frames and most to be gone by next week.
After looking around the area, he said the waterway was very healthy and there were plenty of fish thriving in the river.
“There’s heaps and heaps of mullet. I probably saw 30 or 40 mullet up on top of the water,” he said.
However, he urged people to be careful in the river there as bullrout, a freshwater fish with a sting like a stonefish, were plentiful there.
“I go there to catch shrimp. Every time I pull a pot out of the water, there’s four of five of them in there,” he said.
The spokesperson said his father was stung by a bullrout as a young man and was in excruciating pain for two days.
“If he could have got out of bed and got a knife, he would have cut his foot off,” he said.
St John Ambulance advises a bullrout sting is best immediately treated with water as hot as the patient can stand without burning them for 20 minutes at a time, repeating as necessary. Patients should seek medical assistance if symptoms are severe.
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