Al Bergstein writes on the recent presentation by the Center for Food Safety's attorney Kristina Sinclair. Ms Sinclair discusses the ongoing lawsuit against the Army Corps' permitting of shellfish farms in Puget Sound. 

Mr Bergstein's piece:  https://olyopen.com/2022/11/18/what-you-should-know-about-industrial-raised-shellfish-aquaculture-an-overview/

Ms Sinclair's slide presentation: https://olyopen.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/2022-11-17-Industrial-Shellfish-Slides.pdf

Contact Center for Food Safety here:

Pacific Northwest Office
2009 NE Alberta St, Suite 207
Portland, OR 97211
phone (971) 271-7372

(From Protect the Peninsula)

What You Should Know About

Insudstrial Raised Shellfish

Join Protect the Peninsula’s Future for its 49th Year Celebration (Virtual)

Thursday, November 17, 7:00 PM      

 RSVP to PPF@olympus.net to receive the Zoom connection*

Our featured speaker this year is Kristina Sinclair,

Associate Attorney at the Center for Food Safety

 

*Space is limited to 100.

Kristian Sinclair, Associate Attorney

Center for Food Safety

Kristina Sinclair is an Associate Attorney at the Center for Food Safety (CFS), where she focuses on environmental cases challenging industrial agriculture, including commercial shellfish.

Kristina earned her J.D. from the University of California, Berkeley, School of Law. While in law school, Kristina was an Articles Editor for the California Law Review. She also participated in the Environmental Law Clinic, served on the steering committee for Students for Economic and Environmental Justice, and worked as a teaching assistant for Appellate Advocacy. Upon graduation, she received recognition for her pro bono work and a Certificate of Specialization in Environmental Law.

Since joining CFS, Kristina has been working on a lawsuit challenging highly disruptive industrial shellfish operations in Washington. In this case, CFS and Coalition to Protect Puget Sound allege that the U.S. Army Corps (USACE) failed to properly consider the potential risks before reissuing the nationwide permit for commercial shellfish activities in January 2021, in violation of the Clean Water Act, National Environmental Policy Act, and Endangered Species Act. In addition, USACE has authorized over 400 commercial shellfish operations without any public notice or environment review. Consequently, these operations have significant adverse, effects on Washington's local environment and wildlife. 

 

 In this webinar, Kristina will provide an overview of USACE's shellfish permitting requirements, as well as the ongoing litigation challenging USACE's unlawful shellfish permitting actions. She will also share some insights from this legal work and potential opportunities for future advocacy. 

Background on USACE's Permitting Requirements
History of USACE's Unlawful Permitting Actions in Washington
Previous Case
Current Case

Future Opportunities

Tell DNR and USFWS It's a Wildlife Refuge

(See some of the many species here)

Get involved and make a difference for today and tomorrow, to help preserve one of the few National Wildlife Refuges supporting the great migrations of sea birds. An industrial shellfish farm does not belong in the Dungeness National Wildlife Refuge. 

Plastic Grow Out Bags Do Not Belong in a Wildlife Refuge

Beyond Pesticides has written a piece on why plastic grow out bags do not belong in a Wildlife Refuge, which includes a link for comments. 

As they note so well: 

The Dungeness Bay Wildlife Refuge was created by Executive Order in 1915 by Woodrow Wilson, directing the area to be set aside as a “refuge, preserve and breeding ground for native birds and prohibits any disturbance of the birds within the reserve.” The Refuge provides habitat, a preserve and breeding grounds for more than 250 species of birds and 41 species of land animals. 

The front page of the Refuge website states: “Pets, bicycles, kite flying, Frisbees, ball-playing, camping, and fires are not permitted on the Refuge as they are a disturbance for the many migrating birds and other wildlife taking solitude on the Refuge.” With this level of concern, it is counterintuitive to allow destructive industrial aquaculture. 

Beyond Pesticides Article

Submit Comments Here

It only takes a little bit: 10 billion, only 10 to get you sick

CBC News on the Norovirus outbreak from oysters harvested in British Columbia.
(Read article here:
https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/oysters-norovirus-bc-1.6452571)

The aquatic environment is impacted by many things, from climate change to recreational owners of boats discharging untreated waste to failing septic systems to ecosystem transformation from industrial aquaculture. In this article from CBC, the impact of what is suspected to be human waste has impacted the reputation of industrial shellfish operations in BC through illnesses contracted from the consumption of raw oysters. 

 WA Supreme Court Affirms Non-native Atlantic Salmon Should not be Grown in Puget Sound

Leaves Unanswered Whether Extra Genetic Material in Triploids are Native or Not

Washington Supreme Court affirmed unanimously, 9-0, that non-native Atlantic salmon do not belong in Washington's Puget Sound. All agreed that the Department of Fish and Wildlife did not have to require an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) when Cooke Aquaculture proposed moving to triploid Rainbow trout. It left unanswered whether the Department of Natural Resources (DNR) should renew leases and what should be considered in that decision. Whether British Columbia will follow and remove non-native Atlantic salmon remains unknown as is whether Rainbow trout with extra genetic material is "native" or not. 

Normal (left) and  Extra Genetic Material (right)

= a sterile female 

(is a triploid native?)