De Costi Seafoods Pty Ltd is proposing to undertake an expansion of Australia's largest prawn farm.
The Stage 4 Proserpine Prawn Farm Expansion project would see the construction and operation of an additional fully integrated, land-based aquaculture and processing precinct. The expansion is to be located at the existing facility between the Gregory River and Eden Lassie Creek, Edgecumbe Bay.
The expanded facility would provide for an additional 210 hectares (ha) of production ponds located immediately to the south of the existing ponds, utilising the existing intake and discharge infrastructure. In
addition, approximately 59 ha of water treatment ponds and supporting infrastructure are proposed to be built as part of the project.
Once completed, the upgraded facility will allow De Costi Seafoods to produce an additional 3,650 tonnes (t) of prawns annually. Given that the total Queensland aquaculture production of prawns in 2021/2022 was 8,728t, the scale of the proposed Stage 4 is considered significant at the local, regional and state levels, and will supply the growing demand for sustainably-produced protein.
De Costi Seafoods has already obtained the relevant planning and environmental approvals from both the Queensland Government and Local Government for Stage 4 of the project.
If the final Federal approval is obtained early in 2024, then construction could commence by mid-2024, allowing for the 2025/2026 season to be the first productive season for the expanded facility.
De Costi Seafoods proposes to lodge a Public Environmental Report to satisfy the requirements of the EPBC Act 1999. The requirements include identification and analysis of the economic impacts at the local, regional and state levels by means of a Cost Benefit Analysis (CBA) or similar study.
The expansion will be located at the existing Proserpine Prawn Farm facility at Edgecumbe Bay. The coloured areas in the proposed site map below are representative of the additional facilities to be developed in the Stage 4 expansion project.
