Offshore aquaculture plan for Gulf of Mexico approved
In a 11 to 5 vote, the Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council on Wednesday approved a plan that would allow off-shore fish farming to take place in the Gulf. The plan now goes out for public comment before the Commerce Department will make a final decision some three months from now. The US is trying to promote sustainable aquaculture development as a means to reduce the huge seafood deficit that the country currently is facing- some 80 per cent of all seafood consumed in the US is imported- at a cost of approximately $US 2.7 billion (Commerce Dept.).
The plan will allow for the use of idle oil and gas rigs to be used as bases for floating or submerged cages, stocked with thousands of fish of various species. A few years ago, Cyber Diver News Network reported that there were 4,050 platforms in the Gulf of Mexico, and that after its useful life is expired, a platform can cost between $US 400,000 and 5.0 million to decommission, with the rigs located in deeper water being the most costly to remove. Between the years 1990 and 1999, a total of 1,261 rigs were removed, while 1,428 new platforms were installed. A program aimed at turning old rigs into coral-supporting reefs had at the time resulted in 188 platforms being essentially sunk on site. Only a fraction of the used platforms are being envisioned used by fish farmers, with an estimated area of 2,000 acres (~809 Hectares) being required to produce the same amount of fish that is harvested in the Gulf each year.
As expected, the plan drew criticism from environmentalists and fishermen, worried about pollution, escaped fish and reduced fishing opportunities for tourists. Local entrepreneurs meanwhile are gearing up to take advantage of new business opportunities in an area sure to be of increased importance as world fish stocks fail to yield increased seafood for a growing, more health-conscientious population.
