NYSAquaNews Vol. 4 #2 June 27, 2011
Fish Farmers meet with DEC Commissioner to Discuss Issues
On June 22, 2011 a delegation of fish farmers from the New York State Aquaculture Association met with DEC Commissioner Joseph Martens and high ranking members of his staff, to discuss issues facing the
industry. The Association's delegation consisted Darin Hickling - Hicklings Fish Farm, David Relyea - FM Flower and Son Oyster Bay LI, Bill Brauninger - Slit Rock Shellfish, LLC., Jeff Williams - NY Farm Bureau and myself. The Commissioner's delegation consisted of Assistant Commissioner Chris Amato, Patricia Riexinger, Director, Division of Fish, Wildlife and Marine Resources and Phil Hulbert, Chief of the Bureau of Fisheries. The commissioner was a gracious host and made everyone feel comfortable in expressing their candid views regarding long standing issues on a number of DEC regulations. As the meeting proceeded, the Commissioner listened intently to each presentation and took copious notes. His questions to presenters were encouraging in nature and showed a true willingness to gain an understanding of grower's concerns so
that an equitable resolution could be achieved.
First on our agenda was a discussion of the regulation prohibiting the sale of Largemouth Bass to third party vendors; restaurants, grocery stores, etc.. Darin Hickling did a remarkable job of presenting the Association's concerns and answered any questions regarding the culturing of largemouth bass in ponds and recirculation
systems, the sale of live fish to out of state customers, the need to develop New York State markets for largemouth bass, job potential, product quality and ways to identify wild and farm raised largemouth. Extensive discussion took place regarding the tagging of farm raised bass. The association has long opposed the tagging of live fish because of the mortalities caused by additional handling, labor costs, cost of tags and the higher cost of New York bass in the marketplace due to the tagging process. Jeff Williams sited a recent survey of all U.S. states regarding their policy toward the marketing of farm-raised black bass. In the overwhelming majority of cases, proof of origin was handled via a simple bill of lading and no state required the tagging of individual fish for identification purposes. Darin stated that if the regulations were changed to allow for
third party sales of largemouth bass in New York State, his company would immediately build another large recirculation rearing facility to more than double his farm's capability for raising largemouth bass for food.
Director Patricia Riexinger suggested a committee of growers and DEC officials be formed to further investigate this issue. The commissioner agreed and I was asked to formulate a group for the Association. Over the next month or so a date and location for a meeting will be determined. If you would like to be part of the committee to discuss legalizing the sale of largemouth bass as a food commodity to third party vendors within New York State, please contact me by phone at 585-243-3543. Basic background requirements are: Be a member of the NYSAA in good standing; own a Fish Hatchery in New York State; currently raise largemouth bass for food or other purposes within New York State; or be willing to add largemouth bass as a food commodity to your fish farm production provided regulations were changed to allow you to sell your product to third party vendors in New York State.
Item two on the agenda was changing current regulations so shellfish growers could sell their product when ready and not be tied to the regulations regarding seasonal harvest of wild shellfish. The discussion quickly turned to the culturing, harvesting and marketing of scallops. Bill Brauninger presented the Association's case on this issue stating that market size scallops can be produced in less than a year, but because of regulation, can not be harvested before winter. When trying to over winter a crop of market size scallops more than 90% die due to cold temperatures. In neighboring states, pre-winter harvesting is allowed and that product is then imported into New York State and sold legally on the open market. If New York growers were given the same
flexibility, a whole new product line could be added to New York's aquaculture product list, creating jobs, a new home grown quality product and boosting commerce in the Long Island area. DEC delegates seemed favorable to changing regulations to allow for farm-raised harvest out of the normal wild harvest season, but needed to ensure wild stocks were not adversally effected. The commissioner indicated DEC would review
this further and get back to us.
Item three, the ability to cultivate and harvest shellfish using modern methods on leased grant franchised or fee title owned underwater land. Dave Relyea was the Association's presenter on this issue and stated mechanical harvesting of shellfish in bay areas has had a long history and the recent banning of the practice for new leases would hurt the industry. He speculated that if mechanical harvesting were banned altogether, he and everyone else in the shellfish industry would be forced out of business. Patricia Riexinger stated that DEC's concern over mechanical harvesting was not centered on the process, but the effect dredging would have on fish habitat and weed growth in these new areas being considered for cultivation. DEC had no plans for extending the mechanical harvesting ban to areas currently being cultivated by growers. DEC wanted to review new applications on a case by case basis for future cultivation. The Commissioner said DEC would review the permitting process and get back to us. Dave also stated that it was important that the DEC continue to sent a delegation to the ISSC conference this Fall and asked if it was still in the budget. The commissioner and others present, acknowledged that it was.
Item four, testing of the waters of Western Long Island Sound for future cultivation. This area has a long history of hard clam production, but in recent years has been off limits for any type of cultivation. If these waters were tested according to Interstate Shellfish Sanitation Conference Standards (ISSC), many new jobs, thousands of pounds of quality shellfish and much needed commerce could be brought to the Long Island
area. Both the Commissioner and his staff looked favorably on developing this idea. Bringing New York State back to its former prominence as a world center for shellfish and seafood production would certainly help
the economic outlook for the area and state. With tight budgets, funding of the water testing, which would take two years to complete, was an important concern. On June 19, 2011, Senator Chuck Schumer appeared on the TV program, Face the Nation, and stated that "in order for our nation to reduce the deficit, it must first create sustainable employment for its people." He went on to say, we must be willing to invest in short term projects that will ultimately support themselves in the future. What better place for the federal government to invest a relatively small amount of money, to produce many sustainable long term jobs, than Western Long Island Sound. The Commissioner asked his staff to do a cost analysis of the testing and get back to him. Hopefully, the DEC and the Association could formulate a funding proposal to Senator Schumer in the near future.
Item five, Essex County renovating its Crown Point Hatchery to sell fish on the open market. For many years Essex County's Crown Point Fish Hatchery has produced trout for conservation stocking in their area. Recently, they have made plans to renovate their aging facilities via public grants and sell their fish on the open market. The Association is not opposed to conservation stocking programs, but has concerns regarding government agencies selling government subsidized fish on the open market in direct competition with private growers. With growers transporting fish all over the state, many have voiced concern over the Essex County project, since it would mean the potential loss of some of their major customers in the Adirondack Region as well as
elsewhere in New York State. At this point in the meeting we had run 30 minutes over our originally scheduled time period and the Commissioner had another meeting to attend. We were unable to discuss this point at length with the Commissioner, however, Dean Norton, NY Farm Bureau President, had sent a letter to Commissioner Martens on June 1, 2011 explaining the situation. Before going to his next meeting, the
Commissioner stated the Essex county proposal had been put on hold until a meeting between the various stakeholders could be arranged. Our delegation was very pleased with the meeting and appreciated having the
Commissioner take time out of his busy day to meet with us. As most of you know he is responsible for all environmental issues in the entire state and has many irons in the fire. For him to set aside time to meet personally with us regarding aquaculture was certainly appreciated.
APHIS Established State based Liaisons
Please find below a link to a document containing contact information for APHIS state liaisons
to aquaculture programs administered by the USDA Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service
(APHIS). If you have any questions regarding aquatic animal health issues or current APHIS
regulations regarding the movement of fish in your state, please contact the APHIS fish health
liaison in your state.
http://www.aphis.usda.gov/animal_health/animal_dis_spec/aquaculture/downloads/aquaculture_liaisons.pdf
Editor's Commentary
The meeting with DEC Commissioner Joseph Martens was an important milestone in the development of a positive dialog between the Association and government officials. As stated in the second paragraph of the above article, Commissioner Martens set a positive tone for our meeting right from the onset and that positive tone continued right to the end. Our entire delegation was impressed by the Commissioner's candor and
sincerity in listening to the issues we raised. At several points during the meeting he acknowledged support for our ideas with the understanding that protecting the environment was his prime concern. We appreciate that concern and we too want to protect the environment from which we depend for our livelihoods. In the coming
months we hope to work cooperatively with the DEC in developing progressive new programs where growers, environmentalists and the public at large benefit.
Your Friend in Aquaculture,
Ted Universal
President - NYSAA
Fish Farmers meet with DEC Commissioner to Discuss Issues
On June 22, 2011 a delegation of fish farmers from the New York State Aquaculture Association met with DEC Commissioner Joseph Martens and high ranking members of his staff, to discuss issues facing the
industry. The Association's delegation consisted Darin Hickling - Hicklings Fish Farm, David Relyea - FM Flower and Son Oyster Bay LI, Bill Brauninger - Slit Rock Shellfish, LLC., Jeff Williams - NY Farm Bureau and myself. The Commissioner's delegation consisted of Assistant Commissioner Chris Amato, Patricia Riexinger, Director, Division of Fish, Wildlife and Marine Resources and Phil Hulbert, Chief of the Bureau of Fisheries. The commissioner was a gracious host and made everyone feel comfortable in expressing their candid views regarding long standing issues on a number of DEC regulations. As the meeting proceeded, the Commissioner listened intently to each presentation and took copious notes. His questions to presenters were encouraging in nature and showed a true willingness to gain an understanding of grower's concerns so
that an equitable resolution could be achieved.
First on our agenda was a discussion of the regulation prohibiting the sale of Largemouth Bass to third party vendors; restaurants, grocery stores, etc.. Darin Hickling did a remarkable job of presenting the Association's concerns and answered any questions regarding the culturing of largemouth bass in ponds and recirculation
systems, the sale of live fish to out of state customers, the need to develop New York State markets for largemouth bass, job potential, product quality and ways to identify wild and farm raised largemouth. Extensive discussion took place regarding the tagging of farm raised bass. The association has long opposed the tagging of live fish because of the mortalities caused by additional handling, labor costs, cost of tags and the higher cost of New York bass in the marketplace due to the tagging process. Jeff Williams sited a recent survey of all U.S. states regarding their policy toward the marketing of farm-raised black bass. In the overwhelming majority of cases, proof of origin was handled via a simple bill of lading and no state required the tagging of individual fish for identification purposes. Darin stated that if the regulations were changed to allow for
third party sales of largemouth bass in New York State, his company would immediately build another large recirculation rearing facility to more than double his farm's capability for raising largemouth bass for food.
Director Patricia Riexinger suggested a committee of growers and DEC officials be formed to further investigate this issue. The commissioner agreed and I was asked to formulate a group for the Association. Over the next month or so a date and location for a meeting will be determined. If you would like to be part of the committee to discuss legalizing the sale of largemouth bass as a food commodity to third party vendors within New York State, please contact me by phone at 585-243-3543. Basic background requirements are: Be a member of the NYSAA in good standing; own a Fish Hatchery in New York State; currently raise largemouth bass for food or other purposes within New York State; or be willing to add largemouth bass as a food commodity to your fish farm production provided regulations were changed to allow you to sell your product to third party vendors in New York State.
Item two on the agenda was changing current regulations so shellfish growers could sell their product when ready and not be tied to the regulations regarding seasonal harvest of wild shellfish. The discussion quickly turned to the culturing, harvesting and marketing of scallops. Bill Brauninger presented the Association's case on this issue stating that market size scallops can be produced in less than a year, but because of regulation, can not be harvested before winter. When trying to over winter a crop of market size scallops more than 90% die due to cold temperatures. In neighboring states, pre-winter harvesting is allowed and that product is then imported into New York State and sold legally on the open market. If New York growers were given the same
flexibility, a whole new product line could be added to New York's aquaculture product list, creating jobs, a new home grown quality product and boosting commerce in the Long Island area. DEC delegates seemed favorable to changing regulations to allow for farm-raised harvest out of the normal wild harvest season, but needed to ensure wild stocks were not adversally effected. The commissioner indicated DEC would review
this further and get back to us.
Item three, the ability to cultivate and harvest shellfish using modern methods on leased grant franchised or fee title owned underwater land. Dave Relyea was the Association's presenter on this issue and stated mechanical harvesting of shellfish in bay areas has had a long history and the recent banning of the practice for new leases would hurt the industry. He speculated that if mechanical harvesting were banned altogether, he and everyone else in the shellfish industry would be forced out of business. Patricia Riexinger stated that DEC's concern over mechanical harvesting was not centered on the process, but the effect dredging would have on fish habitat and weed growth in these new areas being considered for cultivation. DEC had no plans for extending the mechanical harvesting ban to areas currently being cultivated by growers. DEC wanted to review new applications on a case by case basis for future cultivation. The Commissioner said DEC would review the permitting process and get back to us. Dave also stated that it was important that the DEC continue to sent a delegation to the ISSC conference this Fall and asked if it was still in the budget. The commissioner and others present, acknowledged that it was.
Item four, testing of the waters of Western Long Island Sound for future cultivation. This area has a long history of hard clam production, but in recent years has been off limits for any type of cultivation. If these waters were tested according to Interstate Shellfish Sanitation Conference Standards (ISSC), many new jobs, thousands of pounds of quality shellfish and much needed commerce could be brought to the Long Island
area. Both the Commissioner and his staff looked favorably on developing this idea. Bringing New York State back to its former prominence as a world center for shellfish and seafood production would certainly help
the economic outlook for the area and state. With tight budgets, funding of the water testing, which would take two years to complete, was an important concern. On June 19, 2011, Senator Chuck Schumer appeared on the TV program, Face the Nation, and stated that "in order for our nation to reduce the deficit, it must first create sustainable employment for its people." He went on to say, we must be willing to invest in short term projects that will ultimately support themselves in the future. What better place for the federal government to invest a relatively small amount of money, to produce many sustainable long term jobs, than Western Long Island Sound. The Commissioner asked his staff to do a cost analysis of the testing and get back to him. Hopefully, the DEC and the Association could formulate a funding proposal to Senator Schumer in the near future.
Item five, Essex County renovating its Crown Point Hatchery to sell fish on the open market. For many years Essex County's Crown Point Fish Hatchery has produced trout for conservation stocking in their area. Recently, they have made plans to renovate their aging facilities via public grants and sell their fish on the open market. The Association is not opposed to conservation stocking programs, but has concerns regarding government agencies selling government subsidized fish on the open market in direct competition with private growers. With growers transporting fish all over the state, many have voiced concern over the Essex County project, since it would mean the potential loss of some of their major customers in the Adirondack Region as well as
elsewhere in New York State. At this point in the meeting we had run 30 minutes over our originally scheduled time period and the Commissioner had another meeting to attend. We were unable to discuss this point at length with the Commissioner, however, Dean Norton, NY Farm Bureau President, had sent a letter to Commissioner Martens on June 1, 2011 explaining the situation. Before going to his next meeting, the
Commissioner stated the Essex county proposal had been put on hold until a meeting between the various stakeholders could be arranged. Our delegation was very pleased with the meeting and appreciated having the
Commissioner take time out of his busy day to meet with us. As most of you know he is responsible for all environmental issues in the entire state and has many irons in the fire. For him to set aside time to meet personally with us regarding aquaculture was certainly appreciated.
APHIS Established State based Liaisons
Please find below a link to a document containing contact information for APHIS state liaisons
to aquaculture programs administered by the USDA Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service
(APHIS). If you have any questions regarding aquatic animal health issues or current APHIS
regulations regarding the movement of fish in your state, please contact the APHIS fish health
liaison in your state.
http://www.aphis.usda.gov/animal_health/animal_dis_spec/aquaculture/downloads/aquaculture_liaisons.pdf
Editor's Commentary
The meeting with DEC Commissioner Joseph Martens was an important milestone in the development of a positive dialog between the Association and government officials. As stated in the second paragraph of the above article, Commissioner Martens set a positive tone for our meeting right from the onset and that positive tone continued right to the end. Our entire delegation was impressed by the Commissioner's candor and
sincerity in listening to the issues we raised. At several points during the meeting he acknowledged support for our ideas with the understanding that protecting the environment was his prime concern. We appreciate that concern and we too want to protect the environment from which we depend for our livelihoods. In the coming
months we hope to work cooperatively with the DEC in developing progressive new programs where growers, environmentalists and the public at large benefit.
Your Friend in Aquaculture,
Ted Universal
President - NYSAA