OREGON STATE UNIVERSITY
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Aquaculture is breeding, raising and harvesting fish, shellfish and aquatic plants. Basically, it’s farming in water.
U.S. aquaculture is an environmentally responsible source of food and commercial products. It helps to create healthier habitats and is used to rebuild stocks of threatened or endangered species. Oregon aquaculture farms grow oysters, clams, salmon, trout, ornamental fish and algae, such as dulse.
Oregon Sea Grant funds innovative research in aquaculture that benefits aquaculture growers and regulators. Our outreach work shares these results with the general public and with aquaculture stakeholders, including public policy makers and entrepreneurs.
For more information about aquaculture in the U.S., check out this article from the NOAA Sea Grant.
From May to June 2021, Oregon Sea Grant distributed an online survey via email to individuals working in and around the aquaculture industry to help determine barriers to expansion and current needs.
Read the findings in this report (pdf) on the barriers and needs for sustainable aquaculture expansion.
Oregon Aquaculture Explorer Platform: A recent grant from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) will fund expansion of the Oregon Aquaculture Explorer Platform, an online spatial tool on the Oregon Explorer website that provides investment planning tools for aquaculture business development.
West Coast Aquaculture Collaboration: Oregon Sea Grant extension specialists are collaborating with Sea Grant programs in Washington, California and Alaska to coordinate and plan a regional symposium on seaweed aquaculture opportunities on the U.S. west coast.
Oregon Aquaculture Needs Assessment (pdf): This report summarizes the findings of a recent needs assessment conducted by Oregon Sea Grant. The goal of the project was to identify the barriers and needs for sustainable aquaculture expansion. If you have questions, or would like more information on this effort, please contact Amy Ehrhart.
Located in Lincoln County, Angee focuses on commercial fisheries and marine coastal resources, providing community outreach and education on subjects ranging from marine resource management to nearshore energy and sustainable economic growth for coastal industries.
Amy focuses on assessing needs and barriers to sustainable aquaculture expansion in Oregon and coordinating state aquaculture efforts with the US West Coast region.
Sam is located on OSU’s Corvallis campus. Sam is involved in various aspects of aquaculture, but currently, his work intersects aquaculture through his membership on the National Aquaculture Extension Steering Committee. There he is identifying emerging aquaculture Extension efforts, workforce development needs, and work on invasive species.
Located at the Hatfield Marine Science Center, Tim is Oregon Sea Grant’s aquatic animal health specialist. His involvement in aquaculture is primarily through ornamental fish.
