In a move which confused his supporters, Governor Abercrombie, signed into law an extension of the controversial open ocean aquaculture leases to 65 years. This despite originally putting them on his veto list.
According to MauiTime Weekly:
Large scale aquaculture—the use of giant underwater cages to farm massive quantities of yellowfin tuna, moi and other fish the same way agri-business grows bloated swine and poultry on land—is big business in Hawaii. There are active or proposed fish farming operations off Maui, Lanai, Oahu and Hawaii Island, and the whole deal is projected to grow 900 percent by 2015. Organizations like Food & Water Watch in Washington, DC find this an appalling trend.
“After a decade, and an investment of millions in taxpayers’ dollars, it is clear that the industry has not lived up to its promises of both economic and environmental sustainability,” the group concluded in its 2010 report The Empty
Promise of Ocean Aquaculture in Hawai`i. “Instead, industrial fish farming damaged ocean ecosystems, infuriated Native Hawaiian rights groups and contributed little to the local economy.”
Read the whole story: Something Smells Fishy When Hawaii Governor Abercrombie Flips On Factory Farming