FISH

Open-Water Fish Farming

in the Keys?
Fact Sheet • December 2009

T he Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council and National Marine Fisheries

Service (NMFS) are federal bodies that make decisions about fish in U.S.
waters. In September 2009, despite receiving thousands of letters opposing
fish farming in Gulf waters, NMFS allowed a plan approved by the Gulf Council
to permit open-water fish farming to go into effect. This industrial form of fish
production is sometimes called “open-ocean aquaculture,” “ocean fish farming”
or “offshore aquaculture.” Whatever the name, it can cause serious problems for
coastal and fishing communities and our waters.

What Is Open-Water Fish Farming? Open-Water Fish Farming Usually Only

Also known as ocean aquaculture or offshore aquaculture,
open-water fish farming is the mass production of finfish
using enormous, floating net pens or cages in open waters
(between three and 200 miles off the coast, except off of
the Texas and west Florida coasts, where federal waters
begin about nine miles from shore). Plans are currently
moving forward without a real understanding of the risks
such operations pose to human health, the economies of
coastal and fishing communities, wild fish populations,
marine mammals, endangered and threatened species,
species of concern, birds, essential habitat and other frag-
ile and special areas.
Benefits a Few but Can Harm Many
Commercial fishermen, recreational fishermen, coastal
residents and those in the tourism industry — anyone
who relies on clean waters for their livelihood or enjoy-
ment — could be harmed by the implementation of this
plan. Fish farming can pollute the waters, decrease the
areas available for commercial and recreational uses, and
— since the cages are not always submerged — destroy
the natural beauty of the Keys.
Open-Water Fish Farming Can Hurt
Commercial and Recreational Fishermen
Historically, commercial fishermen have lost jobs when
open-water aquaculture facilities have farmed the same
species that are also wild-caught. Competition from
farmed fish pushes the price of wild fish down and can
make individual fishing quotas less valuable because
there is too much fish available on the market. Combined
with high oil and gas prices, commercial fishermen can
be hurt by open-water fish farms. All fishermen could
be impacted by where cages are placed. The plan does
not identify which areas will be used for open-water fish
farming and which will not. Facilities could be installed
in or near popular fishing grounds. Additionally, the plan
prevents fishing near or around the farms and designates
a buffer zone around the operations. Valuable fishing
areas could be lost around where farms are located.
Open-Water Fish Farming Can Diminish
Wild Fish’s Food Supply
Farmed fish are often fed wild fish either directly or after
being processed into fish meal or oil. These prey fish are
a crucial part of the marine ecosystem, serving as food for
marine mammals, birds and other larger fish. Feeding
wild prey to farmed fish is also inefficient: It can take two
to six pounds of wild fish to raise one pound of farmed
fish. While some are turning to other protein sources
(like soy) as an alternative for fishmeal and oil, the im-
pacts of introducing a large amount of land-based nutri-
ents into the marine ecosystem are not well understood.
Open-Water Fish Farming Can Hurt the
Local Economy and Environment
This plan allows for commercial scale open-water fish
farming — which involves use of many fish cages. One
popular style of net pen is the size of 33 Olympic-sized
pools put together. These operations are often unat-
tractive and predators, like sharks, can frequently be seen
nearby, attracted by the captive fish. Such large facilities
could change the face of the Keys and thus also the expe-
rience of those that live and spend time there.
If It Can Cause Problems, Why Was
It Approved?
Who will benefit from open-water fish farming? Open-
water fish farming has been pushed by NMFS and some
Gulf Council members that are involved with (or hope to
be involved with) open-water fish farming. While con-
sumers certainly need more access to clean, healthy fish
from local sources, this plan is not a good solution. For-
eign investors and the industry itself are the most likely
to benefit from open-water fish farming, while potentially
harming our local communities. In order to be profitable,
open-water fish farming must be done at an industrial
scale, which requires a large amount of capital to begin.
Big business is the only player with enough money for
start-up operations.
What Are People Doing About It and
What Can I Do?
Prior to the passing of the Gulf Council’s plan, thousands
of people wrote letters, made phone calls or attended
public hearings. Although the plan was tacitly approved,
there are ways we can stop its implementation and
protect those who could be negatively affected. Sanctu-
ary Advisory Councils can play a special role in defend-
ing our most valuable places by recommending a ban on
open-water fish farming in their respective sanctuaries.
Individuals and organizations can help by writing to their
members of Congress and asking them to take a stand
against industrialized open-water fish farming.
For more information:
web: www.foodandwaterwatch.org
email: info@fwwatch.org
phone: (202) 683-2500 (DC) • (415) 293-9900 (CA)
Copyright © December 2009 Food & Water Watch