GAO Report on Offshore Marine Aquaculture

The Government Accountability Office has recently released a report considering the administrative and environmental issues inherent in developing a regulatory system for offshore marine aquaculture.  From the introduction:

Globally, aquaculture production has grown significantly over the past 50 years, from less than 1.1 million tons around 1950 to about 65.5 million tons in 2004. A majority of global aquaculture fish and shellfish are raised in a freshwater environment and species raised in a marine environment make up about 36 percent of aquaculture production. Marine aquaculture is dominated by high-value fish, such as salmon. Many countries are producing marine fish, though a NOAA official indicated that most production is occurring in shallow, sheltered areas relatively close to shore. A few countries, such as Ireland, have expressed interest in or are developing policy frameworks to regulate offshore aquaculture in the open ocean. To date, however, a NOAA official said that no countries have substantial offshore aquaculture industries with facilities sited in open-ocean environments.

The United States’ aquaculture industry includes both onshore and nearshore operations and produces both fish, such as salmon and catfish, and shellfish, such as oysters. Onshore aquaculture facilities are primarily involved in raising freshwater species, such as catfish. Marine aquaculture facilities in the United States are generally located in waters close to shore and in sheltered conditions, and they most frequently raise oysters, mussels, clams, and salmon. The salmon aquaculture industry in the United States is concentrated in Maine and Washington, although the industry is relatively small compared with the global salmon aquaculture industry, accounting for less than 1 percent of the world’s production.

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