UPDATE: MORE time to take a stand against fish farming

The comment period has been extended to Nov. 4!!

The Virtual Hearing was successful in getting the Army Corps (USACE) to open a Comment Period on the construction permit for the Velella Epsilon Fish Farm off Sarasota’s coast.

Please send comments to the Army Corps expressing your objections to the permit and requesting a public hearing at the email below by Nov. 4. Comments “must state the specific reasons for requesting the public hearing”:

COMMENTS regarding the potential authorization of the work proposed should be submitted in writing to the attention of the District Engineer through the Tampa Permits Section, 10117 Princess Palm Avenue, Suite 120, Tampa, Florida 33610-8302 or preferably by electronic mail at: OceanEra_VEAquaculture@usace.army.mil within 30 days from the date of this notice (i.e. November 4, 2020).

 

The decision whether to issue or deny this permit application will be based on the information received from this public notice and the evaluation of the probable impact general navigation pursuant to Section 10 of the RHA.

 

QUESTIONS concerning this application should be directed to the project manager, Katy Damico, in writing at the Tampa Permits Section, 10117 Princess Palm Avenue, Suite 120, Tampa, Florida 33610-8302 or preferably by electronic mail at : OceanEra_VEAquaculture@usace.army.mil or, by telephone at (813) 769-7076 or (813) 467-6603.

      Submit your comments now thru November 4

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There's still time to speak out!

There are a few more days for the public to add thoughts and voices to the overwhelming opposition to offshore fish farming near Sarasota's beaches. (Sample testimony)

Submit your comments now - open through Oct. 14.

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LTE of 9.21.20 in the Herald Tribune

The federal government recently moved to speed the development of industrial fish farming in the Gulf of Mexico by designating an “aquaculture opportunity area.”

But what “opportunity” is it really creating?

Offshore aquaculture consists of floating pens filled with tens of thousands of fish – and waste, excess feed and various chemicals freely polluting the surrounding environment. 

When those facilities are damaged during extreme weather, they can rupture, allowing the fish to escape and disrupt our local ecosystems.

If this isn’t enough, the Army Corps of Engineers is poised to issue a permit for a new fish farming facility in federal waters off Sarasota called Velella Epsilon, without making the application public. This comes in spite of strong opposition from Sarasota, Holmes Beach and Sanibel.

The facility may increase red tide, and pollute beaches and waters that are the backbone of our local economy.

On Sept. 30, a coalition of residents, government officials, business owners and environmentalists will participate in a virtual people’s hearing to give the public a voice in the permitting process, and make our opposition loud and clear.

Register to speak here

Submit audio, video and written statements

 

Dr. Neal Schleifer, Sarasota

Thanks and some analysis - Adrien Lucas

Art work by Robin Bloom On August 23, 2017 the Sarasota County Commission voted to deny the siting of a Construction / Demolition Waste Processing Facility at Apex Rd. and Palmer Blvd. Three voted to deny the application, two voted in favor. The two Commissioners who voted in favor of the dump were Commissioner Moran (the Celery Fields sit in his very own District 1) and Commissioner Maio.  Thousands of you signed petitions, came to the rallies, emailed, phoned or sent mail in opposition to the proposed sales of the public owned lands that are known as "The Quads" adjacent to the Celery Fields. Your dedication of time and sharing information about what was occurring in real time helped form an effort that successfully defeated the county's poorly conceived plans at every juncture!  This was a non-partisan effort that was successful because we all recognized the value and importance of the Celery Fields and what this place means to the people of Sarasota, its visitors and Mother Earth. We also recognized that introduction of a facility like this would ruin the neighborhoods adjacent to the Celery Fields, a topic I had no knowledge of when I went to TST's neighborhood workshop on January 30. Sorry to be a Debbie Downer, however, I must point out that both the Sarasota Chamber of Commerce and Visit Sarasota (who claim to recognize the dollar value of tourism) never made a statement; nor did a single "science" organization. It is a sad reflection on our community when local institutions who are indebted to the tourism industry remain silent. All of you, however, you did speak out. I have made more friends through this exercise and we all did this together! We can reach "across the aisle" as they say in D.C. to make differences locally when it comes to environmental stewardship.  Please email me if you are interested in running for County Commissioner, I'm all ears. I don't care about your party affiliation, we all breathe the same air and drink the same water. I want to know how you will protect your neighborhoods and Sarasota county from further reckless planning such as this crazy adventure we've been through known as "Save Our Celery Fields." And if you aren't interested in running for office, please consider choosing just one local subject in your community that is near and dear to you and protect it like it's part of your family. To the Celery Moon and Back, with the utmost gratitude and respect, THANK YOU! Bird Nerd, Adrien Lucas NEWS LINKS ON WEDNESDAY'S WIN: County narrowly denies recycling near the Celery Fields Citizens of Sarasota - One of four things we learned at the Celery Fields Hearing TST Public Hearing August 23 Video of Hearing (this will download an mp4 to your computer. WSLR Radio - Sarasota County Planning Commission and the Celery Fields: Win for the Community EMAIL THE SARASOTA COUNTY COMMISSIONER  A THANK YOU TO THE COMMISSIONERS WHO VOTED TO DENY THE DUMP AND TO ASK THEM TO PLEASE REVISIT THE LAND USE DESIGNATION APPLIED TO THE QUAD PROPERTIES AND HAVE THESE PROPERTIES RECOGNIZED AS PART OF THE CELERY FIELDS.  Paul Caragiulo - pcaragiulo@scgov.net  Nancy Detert - ncdetert@scgov.net Charles Hines - chines@scgov.net  BOOS TO THE COMMISSIONERS WHO VOTED IN FAVOR OF THE DUMP: Michael Moran - mmoran@scgov.net Al Maio - amaio@scgov.net  If you have received this email, it is because: 1) you signed up to receive Celery Field information 2) you are a friend of one of the activists who contributed to this email 3) you signed a Celery Field petition. If you no longer wish to receive email from Save Our Celery Field, simply respond with "Delete Me" in the subject line. Adrien Lucas| 941-539-9044 | SaveOurCeleryField@gmail.coml |  STAY CONNECTED

Adrien Lucas | Celery Fields, 6893 Palmer Boulevard, Sarasota, FL 34240 9415399044 Sent by saveourceleryfield@gmail.com in collaboration with Try it free today