WEAK GULF OF MEXICO
AQUACULTURE AMENDMENT BLOCKED

2/08  On January 31st, at the meeting of the Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council (the Council) in St. Petersburg, Florida, NOAA attorneys advised the Council not to proceed with the scheduled approval of its offshore aquaculture plan, saying the amendment was not in compliance with several federal laws. The decision comes on the heels of a letter submitted by an attorney for Food and Water Watch that outlined legal holes in the amendment - most notably, the Council's flawed assumption that it has the authority to regulate offshore aquaculture under the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act.

Food and Water Watch is part of an alliance of commercial and recreational fishermen, consumer groups, and conservation organizations that includes the NCMC. Since the aquaculture plan debuted in January 2007, alliance members have identified numerous gaps in provisions to safeguard wild fish stocks and the environment. NCMC pointed out several glaring omissions including the absence of a requirement to reduce the use of wild-caught fish in feed. Gulf menhaden would be left particularly vulnerable to increased demand for local aquafeed since the menhaden fishery is not regulated by a total allowable catch (TAC).

The National Offshore Aquaculture Act of 2007, which was drafted by NOAA, was submitted to Congress last year and has stalled in both houses, largely due to criticism that the bill did not include environmental standards. As the Senate works on a competing bill and the House discusses markups to NOAA’s Bill, NOAA is sidestepping the legislative process and working instead through regional fishery management councils to implement its offshore aquaculture plan.

NCMC congratulates our Email Action Alert members who helped block the amendment by sending a flood of protest emails and letters to the Council - so many that the Council asked us to notify them in advance of our next alert!

Learn more about NCMC's position on offshore aquaculture.

Read more about the National Offshore Aquaculture Act of 2007.