Tell the Board of Natural Resources:

vOTE TO PERMANENTLY BAN COMMERCIAL NET PEN AQUACULTURE IN PUGET SOUND

Members of the Washington State Board of Natural Resources,

  • Hilary Franz, Chair of the Board, Commissioner of Public Lands

    Lisa Janicki, Vice-Chair, Commissioner, Skagit County

    Chris Rekdal, Superintendent, Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction

    Wendy Powers-Schilling, Dean, College of Agriculture, Human & Natural Resources Sciences, Washington State University

    Clare Ryan, Interim Director, School of Environmental and Forest Sciences, University of Washington

    Jim Cahill, Senior Budget Advisor, Designee for Governor Jay Inslee

    A copy of the petition will also be delivered to the following Advisors to Governor Jay Inslee:

    Robert Duff, Executive Director of Policy & Outreach

    Ruth Musgraves, Senior Policy Advisor, Natural Resources

    Carrie Sessions, Senior Policy Advisor, Environment & Water

We, the undersigned, respectfully urge you to approve the proposed rule to permanently ban commercial net pen aquaculture in Washington’s marine waters.

We strongly support Commissioner Hilary Franz and the Department of Natural Resources’ (DNR) 2022 decision removing all commercial net pens from Puget Sound. In 2024, Puget Sound is free from the daily pollution and damage caused by this industry for the first time in over forty years. We urge you to permanently prohibit this practice to ensure Puget Sound will continue to be protected for current and future generations.

As Board Members, you are entrusted with overseeing DNR’s mission to protect our environment, uphold Tribal treaty rights, and promote responsible stewardship. By adopting this rule, you will reinforce DNR’s leadership in preserving Washington’s public waters and resources for the benefit of all residents and Tribes.

In particular, the proposed rule is crucial for the protection of wild salmon, an iconic species vital to Washington’s environment, economy, and cultural heritage. While operating in Puget Sound over the last 40 years, this industry discharged massive amounts of daily untreated pollution, including fecal waste, feed, and pharmaceuticals; amplified and spread native and exotic viruses harmful to native wild fish; and caused chronic and catastrophic escape events, including the 2017 Cypress Island collapse that released over 260,000 nonnative, viral-infected farmed fish into Puget Sound. These negative impacts severely undermine state, Tribal, and federal commitments and investments in the recovery Washington’s wild salmon and their ecosystems.

With wild salmon and orcas in crisis, combined with the ever-growing threats of climate change, we cannot afford any more delays— now is the time to take action. This rule represents the culmination of over a decade of advocacy by communities, environmental groups, businesses, fishers, Tribal Nations, scientists, and others working together to safeguard Puget Sound and terminate commercial net pen aquaculture in our state waters. Most recently, 10,000 individuals, over 100 businesses, and numerous Washington Tribal Nations collectively appealed to Commissioner Franz and DNR to cease commercial net pen aquaculture and restore Puget Sound for the benefit and use of all.

Voting to permanently ban commercial net pen aquaculture will guarantee the public that Washington’s iconic wild salmon, Tribal food security and cultural practices, and the natural beauty and ecological integrity of Puget Sound will be protected for future generations.