The fish farm slime problem will not be solved overnight, a spokeswoman for the Environment Ministry said.

An investigation into fish farm pollution started earlier this month after numerous reports of slime washing up in bays around Malta.

Recommendations by British scientists made late in 2012 to avoid slime from fish farming activities hitting the Maltese coast remained unheeded by the authorities, environmentalists told this newspaper.

The government had now been warned that the volume of slime reported this year was “unprecedented”, indicating that illegalities have got out of hand, they added.

The Environment Ministry spokeswoman said the aquaculture industry had been allowed to grow loosely without updating the legal regimes.

The increase in slime came about because the farms were feeding more fish than was originally permitted

Although there could be no “overnight” solution, the spokeswoman said some action had already been taken, including restricting the caging of fish within the approved sites.

The spokeswoman said that an ad-hoc committee consisting of the Environment and Resources Authority’s CEO, the Planning Authority’s executive chairman and the Director General of the Fisheries and Aquaculture Department, was reviewing the situation to mitigate the negative environmental impact.

The slime is believed to be caused by the bait and feed used in fish farms.

Local experts told the Times of Malta the industry had always produced slime, which was “tolerated” by the authorities because the volume was small.

The experts said the increase in slime came about because the farms were feeding more fish than was originally permitted.

A dermatologist has warned that the fatty slime could cause skin irritation and even boils. Swimmers who come into contact with the slime should wash it off as soon as possible using detergent rather than soap, the dermatologist advised.

The slime has been reported in previous years but, this summer, has seen “unprecedented” amounts of it appear along Malta’s coastline.

Readers bathing in some of the bays affected report that the slime is extremely sticky and stinks of dead fish.

The slime has been seen sticking to ropes and swimmer’s zone demarcation lines, letting off a putrid smell.

An aquaculture zone planned for southeast Malta, which would take the fish farm cages further out at sea, has still not materialised because of appeals filed jointly by two companies.

The Fisheries Department was granted a permit to establish the zone in 2005.