The sites, which include 8 in the Santa Barbara Channel, are being proposed by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) following a Trump-era Executive Order to develop sites for fish farms.
"These sites are really really harmful for a myriad of reasons,"
said Jake Schwartz from Don’t Cage Our Oceans.
Schwartz told KCLU that the proposed fish farms are bad for the local environment and for local fishermen.
"The main environmental reason is the pollution that they cause", explained Schwartz.
"The antibiotics that these facilities pump into the water, then mixes with the fish feed and excess fish waste and creates this sludge, which can create toxic algae blooms and even dead zones in the water where there's not enough oxygen to support even basic marine life," he said.
"We think that community here in Santa Barbara want the government to stand with local fisherman and support our local sustainable fishing practices," said Schwartz.
More information on the NOAA proposal is available here: https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/west-coast/aquaculture/west-coast-region-southern-california-aquaculture-opportunity-area .
