Comments for Proposed Changes to MMPA List of Fisheries for 2025

Andrianna NatsoulasLetters, Resources

Don’t Cage Our Oceans submitted comments to the Office of Protected Resources stating that we support NOAA’s proposal to classify certain aquaculture gear as “analogous” to gear used in commercial fisheries; indeed, a cluster of multiple net pens for finfish aquaculture, each possessing several mooring lines, do and will threaten the lives and behavior patterns of marine mammals. Read the …

Comments on Velella Epsilon Permit

Andrianna NatsoulasLetters, Resources

Healthy Gulf wrote comments to the Environmental Protection Agency in response to the National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permit for Ocean Era, LLC. The draft modified NPDES permit authorizes the discharge of industrial wastewater from a marine net-pen aquaculture facility located in federal waters of the Gulf of Mexico approximately 45 miles southwest of Sarasota, Florida. The facility includes …

Fish Farm Disasters

Andrianna NatsoulasGet the Facts, Resources

Web Tracker Around the world, fish farms continue to face serious problems, ranging from escapements to disease to worker safety concerns. We are tracking these incidences around the world, and updating regularly. Check it out here.

Aquaculture with Values

Andrianna NatsoulasGet the Facts, Resources

Fact Sheet The North American Marine Alliance coordinated a vision for community-based, values-driven aquaculture. This vision was a result of surveys, focus groups, and research with members of the Local Catch Network, Don’t Cage Our Oceans, and other allies. Eight main aquaculture values were identified: Food, Stewardship, Community-Based, Access, Equitable Supply Chains, Place-Based Knowledge, Public Resource, Accountability. Check out the …

Members’ Meeting & Fly-in

Andrianna NatsoulasMember Resources

DCO2 Comment Re: Identifying Aquaculture Opportunity Areas in Alaska

Andrianna NatsoulasLetters, Resources

DCO2 submitted comments in response to NOAA’s efforts to identify aquaculture opportunity areas in Alaska. In broad strokes, the request for comment asks stakeholders to provide suggestions over a number of parameters, as NOAA has begun with only considering state waters that are within 25 miles of a coastal community population center, and state waters that do not regularly experience …

Comments Re: Fishery Descriptions

Andrianna NatsoulasLetters, Resources

NOAA is required to maintain a list of fisheries and their interactions with marine mammals. NOAA wants to include fish raised in fish farms to this list. Farmed fish is not a fishery! DCO2 submitted comments, outlining issues with offshore fish farming, concerns about finfish farm interactions with marine mammals, and the fact that fish farms are not a fishery. …

Aquaculture Visioning Report

Andrianna NatsoulasReports, Resources

The North American Marine Alliance coordinated this creation of a vision for community-based, values driven aquaculture. This vision was a result of surveys, focus groups, and research with members of the Local Catch Network and other allies. Eight main aquaculture values were identified: Food – Aquaculture is essential to the overall seafood supply and is vital for healthy and culturally …

Request for Information; Data for Marine Spatial Studies in Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands

Andrianna NatsoulasLetters, Resources

There are several reasons why the most prudent option is for NOAA to refrain from establishing AOAs in Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Chief among these, is that NOAA lacks the legal authority to regulate aquaculture in federal waters. Furthermore, there are grave ecological consequences and inevitable harms to other ocean industries in these regions, should offshore finfish …