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The removal of carp from the ornamental lake at Condado de Alhama golf resort on Thursday December 4 has prompted strong reactions among some local residents, with allegations that the process was inhumane and poorly handled. Others, meanwhile, including environmental consultants and local authorities, insist the operation complied fully with Spanish regulations and formed part of a long-planned environmental restoration project.

 

While emotions have run high, the available information suggests a more complex picture than initial images alone might convey.

 

The common carp is officially classified by the government’s Ministry for Ecological Transition as an invasive species in Spain, and it is thought that it may have got into the ecosystem of the lake from someone dumping a pet there that they didn’t want anymore. For that reason, the decision was made to remove the fish based on three separate consultancy reports, all of which concluded that removal was necessary.

 

Several residents who witnessed the operation described it as distressing. One said the method used appeared “barbaric”, claiming the fish were not humanely removed and rehomed as expected but instead placed into what looked like a skip and left to die.

 

Another resident reported seeing workers using relatively small buckets, banging nets against them to empty the fish before transferring them to a wheelbarrow and then into a large container.

 

According to this account, the container remained on site for several days, which added to concerns about the welfare of the fish and fuelled anger among those who believed the process contradicted assurances previously given.

 

Biocyma, the environmental consultancy specialising in this field which was hired to carry out the removal of the carp, defended the operation in detail. The company acknowledges residents’ sensitivities but maintains that the removal was carried out using authorised and humane techniques.

 

“It was an absolutely model operation, the kind that you wish could be replicated in the hundreds or thousands of irrigation ponds where millions of fish are poisoned every year with toxic substances or pesticides,” said a representative from the company.

 

“First of all, the fish were stunned using electric fishing rods and then caught. The simplest solution would have been to empty the lake to kill them and then remove them.

 

“After being stunned during capture, clove oil, a powerful anaesthetic authorised for use by the Autonomous Community [of the Region of Murcia], was applied to them in the baskets.”

 

The reason all this was necessary seems surprising, and goes a long way to explaining the extended stay of the fish in the containers on the resort.

 

“The common carp is one of the most resistant fish species on the planet, capable of surviving for hours without breathing,” explain the Biocyma spokespeople, “so it is possible that some specimens were still alive when they were collected in the container. The removal and slaughter of the fish was carried out using techniques authorised under the animal welfare law. This is an invasive alien species that causes significant damage to aquatic ecosystems in Spain.”

 

The action to remove the carp from the lake forms part of a broader renaturalisation plan for the lake, approved by the Urban Development Entity and endorsed by environmental technicians from the local council, which owns the lake.

 

 

And in fact, the condition of the lake has improved significantly since the summer of 2024, when it was left a stinking, stagnant pool overrun with mosquitoes.

 

Although the initial images of the fish when they were removed from the lake may be upsetting for some, at the end of the day all of the techniques used in the capture and removal process were fully legal and had been explained in advance in the technical reports. The entire thing was carried out in line with Spanish regulations and with permission from the Environmental Department of the Region of Murcia Autonomous government.

 

While better communication may have helped avoid distress from locals who came across the scene earlier this month, the truth is that this and other actions are contributing to improve the long-term health of the lake.