April 18, 2020

 

US aquaculture sector's global potential faces complex regulatory process

 

 

The US has the capability to be a worldwide leader in aquaculture production, but, according to critics, it cannot happen until a complex regulatory process is streamlined.

 

Pacifico Aquaculture is a striped bass farm located on the lee side of the Todos Santos Islands in Baja California, Mexico, that is co-owned by two US citizens, Omar Alfi and Daniel Farag. The company started in 2010 after investors saw the potential of raising striped bass in cages in federal waters.

 

The idea for raising the striped bass was based on a research project conducted by Hubbs SeaWorld Research Institute (HSWRI), which was funded by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. And the market potential for US investors was clear: The US imports 80% of its seafood consumption, according to NOAA.

 

"The irony is that US research dollars developed these new farming capabilities and US investment dollars were then used to create a new industry, and jobs, in Mexico, which then sells the product back to the US," said Don Kent, president and CEO of Hubbs SeaWorld Research Institute.

 

Unlike the US, Mexico has a well-developed and regulated permitting process for marine farming.

 

"There is no clear process that outlines where the beginning is and where the end is," said Kent about the US regulatory process.

 

"Anyone wanting to invest in offshore farming in US waters faces a very unclear, expensive and uncertain process to gain permission to operate," said Cruz. First, they have to obtain a series of permits.

 

The type of permit is determined by the location and the type of aquaculture. Aquaculture is the breeding, rearing, and harvesting of fish, shellfish, algae, and other organisms, in all types of water environments. Some species are fed and some compete for food in their natural environments.

 

Any farm within three nautical miles of a coastline is considered to be in state waters or navigable waters. Beyond that is federal waters, where all aquaculture requires permits from the Environmental Protection Agency, Army Corps of Engineers, and US Coast Guard. Once the permits are obtained, the National Environmental Policy Act review process can begin.

 

Critics say the NEPA review is not housed under one agency, but rather is a series of negotiations between the agencies to identify environmental concerns and find ways to mitigate them. A review can take as long as two years to be completed and does not guarantee a company can start farming.

 

Aquaculture is very capital-intensive, and because the process takes so long to obtain a permit, it leaves potential investors with few options but to take their money, and jobs, overseas.

 

Some stakeholders believe the best way to mitigate these challenges would be to establish one entity as the lead authority to manage marine aquaculture in federal waters through the creation of an Office of Marine Aquaculture under the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.