Courtesy of NAA:
A research team has published a peer-reviewed regulatory cost analysis for Pacific shellfish farming (Washington, Oregon, and California). Their in-depth and primarily in-person interviews yielded a response rate of 27% of the shellfish farms in the region that captured 74% of the value of Pacific coast shellfish production.
The total annual regulatory burden for the Pacific coast, excluding non-cash opportunity costs, was estimated at $15.6 million (increased farm costs due to regulation), with an additional $110 million in annual lost sales revenue (markets lost due to regulatory action or trade barriers) and $169.9 million in additional lost opportunities (due to regulatory barriers to expansion or diversification); average annual costs were estimated to be $240,621 per farm and $68,936 per hectare. Analysis by farm size demonstrated greater regulatory cost burdens per hectare on smaller-scale producers.
Study results show that the Pacific coast shellfish industry has experienced extensive delays in permitting resulting in substantial lost opportunities, as well as high regulatory costs that have prevented the entry of new businesses; both contributing to the exit of existing farms, and otherwise prevented the industry from responding to growing demand for U.S. shellfish aquaculture products.
In addition to their focus Pacific shellfish aquaculture regulatory costs, the research team summarized the impact of regulatory costs for US aquaculture and global aquaculture to provide context for their efforts that is well worth a read.
Their paper is available here for reading or download. The National Aquaculture Association hosts a webpage where prior work by team members to quantify aquaculture regulatory costs are posted. Please click here to access that page. The new Pacific coast shellfish farming analysis will be added shortly.
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