What a difference a year makes.
Last week I was part of a contingent of fisherfolk, chefs, advocates and educators who went knocking on doors on Capitol Hill seeking support for legislation that would support local fishing communities while voicing opposition to industrial finfish farming. Coordinated by Don’t Cage Our Oceans (DCO2), this gathering over three days was a near mirror image of our trip a year ago in Washington D.C.
But the vibe and overall landscape around Capitol Hill this year was markedly different.
First off, the entire Capitol plaza was fenced off when we arrived. This was in preparation for the joint session address President Trump gave on March 4. I’ve been to Washington a few times, and I’ve never seen such a show of force. There must have been nearly 1,000 Capitol Hill police, Secret Service agents and police officers from other counties spread out around Capitol Hill throughout the day, all heavily armed.
Perhaps that’s why there was a tension in the air that wasn’t nearly as palpable last year. Perhaps the unease stemmed from the rapidly changing legislative landscape shaped in part by drastic cuts to federal agencies and programs like the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA, responsible for domestic fisheries management), and Sea Grant, which supports critical research that helps local fishing communities.
The lines to get into the legislative buildings on the morning after the address were astronomically long. Perhaps that’s because folks were concerned that issues, programs and/or legislation they’ve been working on may be swept away.
Through all of this, over 20 of us DCO2 members gathered from across the country to support the Domestic Seafood Production Act and oppose legislation like Advancing the Quality and Understanding of American Aquaculture (AQUAA Act) remained focused.
As with last year, we split into smaller groups arranged by region to meet with key representatives and senators from coastal states where industrial finfish aquaculture has already begun, or where plans are in the works for industrial net pens. Again we voiced our support for DSPA as it sets a funding path via the US Department of Agriculture to offer grants that would enable fishing communities to build desperately needed local processing facilities so local fishermen can compete with cheap seafood imports. DSPA also blocks funding for industrial net pens in federal waters without previous full congressional consent.
I was part of two teams representing states in New England and along the Gulf of Mexico coast. In each of these meetings, we talked frankly about what’s at stake for local fisherfolk and local fishing communities. Industrial finfish farming will threaten coastal ecosystems and force generational fisherfolk out of business in the process. The “investments and jobs” promised by industrial corporations (many from outside the U.S.) will not benefit fishing families and their communities. They will benefit foreign investors.
The antidote to an industrialized seafood supply chain is to empower local fishing communities with the ability to process the seafood local producers harvest. The path to that antidote is via DSPA.
Yes, the vibe was completely different from last year. But through all of this year’s noise and distraction, we reinforced our message and our focus. We have the opportunity to support working waterfronts, local fisherfolk, and fishing communities.
It’s time our Congressional representatives make that happen.
Want to voice support for domestic, local fisherfolk? Follow this link to find your Congressional representatives and contact them directly. That’s the best way to make a difference.
Top photo: First meeting on the hill: Left to right: Colles, Chef Dana Honn of Nikkei Izakaya in New Orleans, Representative Troy Carter (D-New Orleans), Christian Wagley of Healthy Gulf, James Mitchell of Don’t Cage Our Oceans: Photo: Feini Yin
