The city commissioners of Sarasota, Florida, decided Monday to send a letter to the Environmental Protection Agency opposing an aquaculture pilot project that sought to farm fish about 45 miles off the city’s coast. In the letter, signed by Sarasota mayor Jen Ahearn-Koch, the commissioners file “strong and formal opposition” to the project.
The officials cited the risk of algal blooms as a result of the project’s authorized discharge of nitrogen and phosphates into the ocean. The waste associated with farming the proposed 22,000 Almaco Jack fish would “impact our ever-fragile Gulf ecosystem.” While the city supports exploration of aquaculture in general, the letter says, officials “object to the experimental nature of this project.”
EPA issued a draft permit for the aquaculture pilot in August. If approved, it would be run by Kampachi Farms, LLC, an aquaculture company, and would be the first approved aquaculture operation in federally-controlled ocean waters. Proponents of the pilot say ocean aquaculture is essential to ensuring a stable source of fish for American consumers. Critics say the model would allow privatization and pollution of ocean waters.
Over 120 people attended a meeting with EPA officials to discuss the aquaculture pilot last week at Mote Marine Laboratory in Sarasota. EPA accepted public comments on the proposal until yesterday, Feb. 4.