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Courtesy of NAA:

The joint letter written by the Northwest Aquaculture Alliance (NWAA) and the National Aquaculture Association (NAA) to National Fisherman magazine is now online. This letter is a detailed rebuttal of the criticism by commercial fisherman concerning U.S. aquaculture. The magazine will also publish an abbreviated version of this letter in the print edition that will be distributed at Seafood Expo North America in March.

We wrote our letter in response to a letter opposing finfish aquaculture in U.S. waters that a select group of commercial fishermen circulated to Congress in December 2018.  When National Fisherman magazine published the letter in February 2019 in an article-like format, the NWAA and NAA immediately submitted a rebuttal that included six major points:

• Without Congressional authorization for aquaculture in federal waters, it is unlikely that any significant American marine finfish aquaculture production will emerge any time soon.
• We all need healthy ocean environments, whether we harvest wild fish or raise farmed fish.
• It’s time to stop using sensationalist terms such as “factory farms” to describe marine aquaculture
• Current regulatory authority exists to protect marine water quality and benthic environmental systems, manage fish escapes, require responsible drug and chemical use, ensure safe navigation, and assure consumers that they will have access to safe foods.
• Offshore farms that have operated in Hawaii and Puerto Rico were welcomed by commercial fishermen and operated in a manner that benefited both farmer and fisherman.
• We should be united in encouraging Americans to eat more seafood, both wild and farmed.

Our letter and link to the commercial fishermen’s letter to Congress, as published in the magazine, can be accessed here: https://www.nationalfisherman.com/viewpoints/national-international/mail-buoy-a-place-for-aquaculture/.