H-1557              _______________________________________________

                                                    HOUSE BILL NO. 850

                        _______________________________________________

State of Washington                              50th Legislature                              1987 Regular Session

By Representatives Haugen, Spanel, S. Wilson, Meyers, Zellinsky and P. King

Read first time 2/11/87 and referred to Committee on Natural Resources. Referred to Committee on Ways & Means 2/13/87.

AN ACT Relating to an environmental impact statement on salmon net pens; creating a new section; making an appropriation; and declaring an emergency.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:

NEW SECTION. Sec. 1.     Since 1980, the number of facilities commercially raising salmon in net pens in Washington has risen from one to nine.  Production totals over one million five hundred thousand pounds annually.  Numerous applications have been made for additional salmon net pen sites throughout Puget Sound.

          Public concerns over the environmental consequences of raising fish in confinement have increased in proportion to the number of net pen applications.  Residents near proposed facilities, scientists, commercial fishermen, and other citizens question whether net pen facilities can exist without damaging the marine environment.  They raise concerns over the use of antibiotics on the fish, pathogens carried by fish, the effect of the pathogens on marine life and people, water circulation, plant life, waste accumulation, water quality, property values, aesthetics, commercial fishing, and historical uses of proposed net pen sites.

          To diminish effects of salmon net pens, the commissioner of public lands instituted a limitation on leasing state land for net pen facilities.  The departments of agriculture, ecology, fisheries, and natural resources jointly prepared guidelines for management of salmon net pen facilities.  The departments of ecology and fisheries published a review of the environmental effects of salmon net pens in Puget Sound.

          Significant questions remain unanswered regarding the effect of salmon net pens on Puget Sound.  The existing management guidelines need to be supplemented with biological information developed specifically for Puget Sound.  This information should be based on investigations of impacts on the natural and the human environment.  At a minimum, it should cover water circulation; water quality; phytoplankton; sedimentation; fish; introduction of Atlantic salmon; introduction of pests, parasites, and pathogens; genetic effects; chemical usage; marine mammals; birds; antifouling agents; air quality; human health; noise; light and glare; odors; aesthetics; navigation; recreation; relationships to other water uses; real estate; economics; and commercial fishing.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 2.  The sum of three hundred seventy thousand dollars is appropriated for the 1987-1989 biennium from the general fund to the department of fisheries for the purpose of preparing an environmental impact statement on the guidelines for the management of salmon net pens in Puget Sound.  The draft environmental impact statement shall be completed by June 30, 1988.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 3.     This act is necessary for the immediate preservation of the public peace, health, and safety, the support of the state government and its existing public institutions, and shall take effect immediately.