The Department of Agriculture is has decided to
hold off on its plan to expand oyster aquaculture in the Apalachicola bay.
The Department had announced earlier this month
that it planned to evaluate a number of sites in the Bay for oyster farming,
but that proposal was met with opposition from the county commission.
The proposed sites include 40 acres at Nine Mile,
44 acres at Four Mile, 46 acres in the St. George Island Aquaculture Use Zone
and 72 acres in the HWY 65 Aquaculture Use Zone.
The board sent a letter and resolution opposing
the plan listing a number of concerns including the impacts opening the entire
water column to aquaculture will have not only to boaters, but on other
recreational and commercial fish harvesting.
Concerns were also raised about the safety of the
oysters during the warm summer months when Vibrio becomes a bigger issue.
This week the Department said it would not begin
its site evaluations, but instead will come to the next county commission
meeting to discuss the issue face to face with commissioners.
http://www.oysterradio.com e-mail manager@oysterradio.com with comments http://live.oysterradio.com/
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