Notification to the COE by April 14 is required if you intend to be there in person. If you wish to listen via the internet an email/phone call is also required. A question and answer period will occur at the end of the presentation.
Contact: Patricia Graesser
email: patricia.c.graesser@usace.army.mil
phone: 206-764-3760
Get involved: Become aware of COE aquaculture oversight.
The Army Corps of Engineers has released an announcement about a presentation on the current and future oversight of shellfish aquaculture, nationally and more importantly, in the northwest. For almost ten years now the COE in Seattle has helped control the desired expansion of the shellfish industry in Puget Sound. Requirements in 2007 to supply accurate information were found to not have been met with all applications having been rejected and new ones required.
Politics pays if you pay lobbyists to complain of oversight.
Political pressures in Washington DC to slacken oversight from the COE have been intense, with recent results being the removal of eelgrass protections when an area having lied "fallow" is considered for production. Current pressures for the COE to require a cumulative impacts analysis have not been met with success. Despite ongoing expansion resulting in small, discrete farms becoming far larger point sources of PVC and plastic pollution of Puget Sound, the shellfish industry continues to see nothing wrong and presses forward through politically driven programs such as the Washington Shellfish Initiative proposal to minimize oversight through "streamlining" the permitting process.
[Note: A separate meeting April 18 will be held by Washington State on their permitting process. The Washington Shellfish Initiative Advisory Group meeting will be held April 18, 2016, 9:30am to 12:00pm John L. O’Brien Building, Room B15/18, 504 15th Ave SE, Olympia, WA 98501. See Draft Agenda for that meeting by clicking here.]<<Army Corps of Engineers' Press Release>>
The Seattle District, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, is holding an informational meeting April 20 to update those involved with shellfish aquaculture about ongoing and upcoming permitting program activities in Washington State. Federal, Tribal, state and municipal officials along with growers and interested groups are invited to get an update from the District’s Regulatory Branch with an opportunity to ask questions following the presentation.
The information meeting will be held at 1 p.m. at the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Seattle District Office, at the Federal Center South, 4735 E. Marginal Way South, Seattle, Washington (a map is attached).
The preliminary agenda is as follows:
• 1:00 p.m. Welcome By Col. John Buck, District Commander, Seattle District, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers
• 1:05 p.m. Brief overview of the Corps aquaculture regulatory program
• 1:15 p.m. Update on ongoing activities:
• Status of the programmatic Endangered Species Act consultation for shellfish activities in Washington
• Regional General Permit for shellfish activities or 2017 Nationwide Permit 48 for commercial shellfish activities
Upcoming milestones and opportunities for involvement
• 1:45 p.m. Questions & Answers
• 2:45 p.m. Closing Remarks
The building is a secure facility. If you plan to attend, you must RSVP to enable us to provide names to security officers before the event. Please arrive 15 minutes early to allow time to pass through security. In addition you will need to have valid photo ID and go through a metal detector to enter the building.
If you plan to attend in person, please call Patricia Graesser, Public Affairs Chief, by April 14 at (206) 764-3760 or e-mail her at: patricia.c.graesser@usace.army.mil If you can’t attend in person and wish to join on to a web meeting and audio conference call, please contact Ms. Graesser for the sign on information.
We look forward to seeing you there.
Sincerely,
Michelle Walker
Seattle District, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers
Regulatory Branch Chief
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