Hawai'i Fisheries Initiative - The Hawaii Institute for Public Affairs

With expected increases in population –
Aquaculture
as well as the heightened consumer
awareness of seafood’s nutritional benefits –
the U.S. is expected to need an additional
supply of 2 million metric tons of seafood
by 2025. 93 More than 80 percent of the
seafood consumed by Americans is
imported, with 40 percent of the imports
from farmed seafood. 94
Aquaculture (farming of fresh and saltwater
plants and animals; also called mariculture
as it pertains to saltwater aquaculture) is
the fastest growing form of food production
in the world, and the U.S. government is
eager to boost its market share. 95 In early
2007, the Bush administration’s National
Offshore Aquaculture Act of 2007 was
sent to Congress, and is currently making
its way through the legislative hearings
process. 96 The economic driver for the Act
is an $8 billion U.S. seafood trade deficit,
and increased offshore aquaculture – fish
and shellfish farming – is targeted to reduce
that deficit, while providing additional
jobs and income for coastal communities,
and increasing regional food supply and
security. 97 The possibilities of far-offshore
aquaculture are distinguished from an
established $1 billion state-waters-based
aquaculture industry, dominated primarily
by freshwater species like catfish and trout,
and marine shellfish such as oysters, clams,
and mussels. 98
NOAA, which will take the lead on
management of the proposed aquaculture
industry in federal waters, suggests
that offshore aquaculture is a means of
addressing the widening gap between
seafood demand and wild seafood supply. 99
The offshore area is being targeted
because there are fewer competing uses
farther from shore, as well as the environmental
considerations addressed by
moving production into deeper water and
stronger ocean currents. 100 Open-ocean
demonstration and commercial operations
are located in the state waters of Hawai‘i,
New Hampshire, and Puerto Rico. 101
The Act would establish legal processes
for permits, enforcement, and monitoring.
Highlights of the bill include:
u Authorize the Secretary of Commerce to
issue offshore aquaculture permits for
federal waters.
u Require the Secretary of Commerce to
establish environmental requirements
and to coordinate with federal agencies
to develop and implement a streamlined
permitting process for offshore aquaculture.
u Permitting and management of offshore
aquaculture activities would be a joint effort
between federal agencies and the state
government (permitting will be done by
NOAA/NMFS, with consultation by the state,
other federal agencies, and the public).
u Exempt permitted offshore aquaculture
operations from fishing regulations that
restrict size, season, and harvest methods.
u Establish a research and development
program that would allow NOAA to
fund scientific research and technology
development to facilitate expansion of
marine aquaculture. 102
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