Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 30, Number 1, 1 January 2013 — Open Ocean Aquaculture -- Is this what we want? [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

Open Ocean Aquaculture -- Is this what we want?

Trustee's note: This month's eohmm is written by Tom Oi.ye, president ofRespect the Oeean. n 1999, the Hawai'i state ' Legislature opened Hawai'i state waters to commereial open oeean aquaculture leasing with the adoption of Act 176 and an amendment to HRS 190-D. Currently, there are two operations in Hawaiian waters, with at least two in the pipeline including the massive

247-acre tuna farm proposed by Hawai'i Oeeanie Technology ine. (HOTI) off the North Kohala coast. The HOTI project has completed an EIS and been awarded all necessary permits from the State of Hawai'i. The Army Corps of Engineers is still reviewing endangered species and has not issued a permit. The aquaculture industry promotes the illusion of producing more fish to meet the increasing global demand. However, there is a growing body of intemational documented evidence that shows that the Open Oeean Aquaculture (OOA) industry has a horrific track record for environmental disasters. We simply cannot afford to ignore the depletion of wild fish stocks for fishmeal, addition of antibiotics to combat bacterial infections, transmission of disease to wild fish or the increased nutrient load that ean overwhelm coral reefs with algae resulting from the nitrates or "fertilizer" coming from the farms. Corals require pristine, nutrient-free water to survive. The OOA industry will argue that currents will carry the waste away and disperse it. However, a Stanford University study shows that while the current does carry the waste, it often does not disperse it. Do we want to take the ehanee of this waste befouling our beautiful shores? At the end of the day, the aquatic ecosystem was not designed to handle the mass containment of carnivorous fish like 'ahi. Think about 12 oeean spheres producing 12 million pounds of 'ahi per year. Think about 2 million pounds of fishmeal per month that would be imported and introduced to our pristine waters.

The Kona Blue Water Farms (KBWF) project off the Kona Airport claimed that there is close to zero pollution coming from their project. However, let's not forget that the Department of Health relies on "Best Management Practices." This is the practice of allowing the farms to do their own water quality testing and submit results to the DOH for review. We believe that this is the same as allowing a fox

to watch a ehieken eoop. Also, it's interesting to note that aquaculture spokespersons imply that the waste from the HOTI project would be similar to the bankrupt Hukilau project off Ewa Beach, and the KB WF project off the Kona Airport. However, these comparisons are equivalent to comparing apples to oranges. The KB WF project off Kona is 1/5 the size of HOTI. Also, comparing a 2-pound kāhala to an 80-pound 'ahi is similar to comparing a mouse to a tiger. The nutritional requirements and the metabolic rates are totally different. There are akule and 'ōpelu koa off the Kohala Coast that Hawaiians have been depending on for years. We are concemed that placing oeean spheres 2.5-miles offshore could draw these fish out of their koas. Finally, we are concemed about the potential for disease transmission to our loeal fish. Let's support sustainable aquaculture practices like Hawaiian fishponds, 'opihi, clams, oysters, land-based algae, limu and aquaponics. The residents in Kawaihae, including those on Hawaiian homelands, oppose open fin-fish OOA aquaculture off of the Kohala coast. The potential risks exceed the benefits. It is our kuleana to protect the 'āina and the kai for the future generations. To learn more about Open Oeean Aquaculture issues, and the Hawai'i Oeeanie Technology project, please visit respecttheocean.org. ■

Rūbert K. Lindsey, Jr. Trustee, Hawai'i