In an open letter dated Wednesday, April 6th, 2022, the Don’t Cage Our Oceans coalition and supporters, called on President Biden to revoke an Executive Order still in place from the Trump Administration.
The May 2020 order “pushes agencies to streamline and expedite permitting processes” for industrial finfish farming operations, with little public and congressional oversight, says the letter to Biden and relevant federal officials, including Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo and Ag Secretary Tom Vilsack.
“Industrial offshore fish farms would contaminate our marine waters with drugs, chemicals, and untreated wastes, while creating a breeding ground for pests and diseases,” says the letter dated today.
By the way: The executive order called for an update to the 1983 National Aquaculture Development Plan. The Subcommittee on Aquaculture, which operates under the auspices of the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy, recently sought comments on that update.