Ocean would be divided, privatized, leased under proposal
To feed the country's growing appetite for seafood and reduce American dependence on imports, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration is expected to announce a proposal tomorrow to allow greatly expanded offshore fish farming.
The draft proposal of the National Offshore Aquaculture Act calls for development of regulations to permit farming in federal waters up to 200 miles from shore, and the addition of species to farming -- including cod, halibut and tuna -- that are farmed in other countries. Fish farming, or aquaculture, is currently confined to state waters, closer to shore.
According to the draft, which aims to quintuple fish farming by 2025, ocean resources would be divided into privatized zones with renewable 10-year leases.
"Fisheries are a collapsing industry, and even though aquaculture comes with a lot of baggage, it is absolutely the future of seafood production," said Dr. Daniel Benetti, director of aquaculture and chairman of marine affairs and policy at the University of Miami. Benetti is working with the Snapper Farm off Puerto Rico, a recipient of a NOAA grant.
But critics are worried that NOAA, a branch of the Commerce Department, has not addressed the health and environmental problems of fish farms: pollution from wastes, chemicals and drugs; the impact of escapes on wild fish, including transference of disease and parasites; the dependence on wild fish, which are used as feed for the farmed fish; and the impact on traditional fishing.
In 2003, the Pew Oceans Commission said expansion of fish farms should cease until national standards are in place for ecologically sustainable aquaculture.
"I believe aquaculture is incredibly important," said Jane Lubchenco, a professor of zoology at Oregon State University and a member of the commission. "Now is the time to make sure it grows in a way that is good for human health and the environment."
William Hogarth, NOAA Fisheries Service director, said the proposal, 10 years in the making, has the support of the Bush administration.
Source: http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/business/227245_fish06.html