Commercial net pen aquaculture was outlawed last week in Washington state, some seven years after a net pen collapsed, releasing thousands of Atlantic Salmon into Puget Sound, and two years after the last commercial net pens in the Sound lost their leases and were removed.
The Washington State Board of Natural Resources adopted a rule to prohibit commercial finfish net pen aquaculture on state-owned aquatic lands managed by the Washington State Department of Natural Resources. The Board adopted the rule Tuesday, Jan. 7, clarifying that the ruling only applies to net pen aquaculture and not to hatcheries that restore or boost native stocks of salmon and steelhead.
In 2017, a net pen owned by Cooke Aquaculture collapsed near Cypress Island in Puget Sound, releasing more than 250,000 Atlantic salmon into the sound. Cooke was fined $332,000 and found negligent by the state Department of Ecology. Those net pens were removed in 2018.
“The crisis of our Puget Sound and salmon and orca populations, calls for avoidance. Avoidance is our legal and moral responsibility. In the last two weeks, Talequah has lost another baby calf. It is a reminder of how fragile life is for our orcas and our salmon. But also how challenging it is for us,” said Commissioner of Public Lands Hilary Franz. “No one can say these facilities don’t have an impact. They do. There’s a cost to our agency, there’s a cost to our waters and our bedlands, there’s a cost to our salmon and our orcas. I don’t believe that cost is worth it. Avoidance is absolutely our best solution.”
“There is no debate that there are impacts,” Franz said at the hearing where the Board of Natural Resources adopted the rule to ban net pens in public water. “Avoiding impacts is our legal and moral responsibility,” asking why it was ever allowed.
Commercial finfish farming operated in marine net pens in Puget Sound for more than 40 years on aquatic lands leased from DNR, a DNR news release says. After identifying several violations of those leases, Franz terminated the last two leases for net pens with Cooke Aquaculture in November 2022. Those facilities, which were in Rich Passage off Bainbridge Island and off Hope Island in Skagit Bay, were removed in the spring of 2023. 2024 was the first year in four decades that Puget Sound has been free of commercial net pens.
Two years ago, Franz directed her staff through a Commissioner’s Order to initiate the rulemaking process. The staff completed an extensive and thorough review of the science surrounding open sea net pen salmon farming, as well as reviewing impacts from the farms previously located on DNR-managed lands.
Cooke Aquaculture had previously leased four sites for net pen aquaculture from DNR, most recently for growing steelhead trout in the net pens after years of using them to grow Atlantic salmon.
DNR had determined that allowing Cooke to continue operations posed risks of environmental harm to state-owned aquatic lands resulting from lack of adherence to lease provisions and increased costs to DNR associated with contract compliance, monitoring, and enforcement.
The Washington state Legislature in 2018 phased out Atlantic salmon farming, and the company had shifted operations at its remaining leaseholds in Rich Passage and Hope Island to grow sterile steelhead trout.
“This is a landmark moment for environmental protection,” said Emma Helverson, Executive Director of Wild Fish Conservancy. “Thanks to the commitment of the public and the leadership of Tribal Nations, we have achieved something extraordinary. This victory is not just for Puget Sound—it’s for every community, every species, and every ecosystem that has been impacted by the harmful practice of commercial net pens.”
Helverson added that Franz has been “a fierce and unwavering leader, holding the industry accountable” since the first steps she took in responding to the 2017 Cypress Island net pen collapse. Franz’s first year as DNR Commissioner was in 2017.
The rule was adopted by a majority 4-2 vote, with Commissioner Franz, Skagit County Commissioner Lisa Janicki, University of Washington’s Dan Brown, and Governor Jay Inslee’s financial advisor Jim Cahill all voting to approve the ban. Two board members — Chris Reykdal and Wendy Powers-Schilling – abstained.
Still, according to a Seattle Times article by reporter Lynda Mapes, several of the board members that voted for the ban said that more work needs to be done to examine whether fish farming should be allowed in the future.
The Wild Fish Conservancy said that the decision by the Board of Commissioners was “informed by overwhelming public support, with over 80 percent of public comments submitted in favor of the permanent ban and is a direct response to the ongoing crisis facing wild salmon populations and Southern Resident killer whales, which rely on healthy, abundant runs for survival.”
The Wild Fish Conservancy said that the Board of Natural Resources is making history. Although not the only North American jurisdiction that has banned net pens, it is one of just a few that includes California and Alaska. British Columbia is planning to phase in a ban by 2029.
Most Puget Sound tribes support the commercial net pen ban, including the Swinomish, the Lower Elwha Klallam Tribe, the Suquamish Tribe and the Lummi.
“I am grateful to Public Lands Commissioner Franz and the DNR Board of Natural Resources for permanently protecting our shared waters from the harmful effects of net pens. Our salmon, Orca and all of us dependent on a healthy Salish Sea for our cultural livelihood and recreational enjoyment will benefit for generations to come,” said Swinomish Tribal Community Chairman Steve Edwards.
“This is a significant victory for protecting the Salish Sea and ensuring that our waters remain clean and healthy for future generations,” said Lisa Wilson, Lummi Indian Business Council Member. “Banning net pens is not only a step toward environmental stewardship, but also a critical measure to uphold and respect the Treaty rights of all Tribes. The Lummi nation stands firm in our commitment to safeguarding our shared resources and cultural heritage.”
However, the Jamestown S’Klallam Tribe supports net pen aquaculture, saying it provides jobs in a diminished industry. The Tribe also had attempted to partner with Cooke Aquaculture to produce black cod and steelhead in net pens. Permits were declined by DNR for this project.
For background, see:
— CBB, November 16, 2022, WASHINGTON DNR ENDS LEASES FOR REMAINING TWO NET PEN AQUACULTURE OPERATIONS (STERILE STEELHEAD) ON STATE-OWNED AQUATIC LANDS, HTTPS://COLUMBIABASINBULLETIN.ORG/WASHINGTON-DNR-ENDS-LEASES-FOR-REMAINING-TWO-NET-PEN-AQUACULTURE-OPERATIONS-STERILE-STEELHEAD-ON-STATE-OWNED-AQUATIC-LANDS/
–CBB, Jan. 27, 2022, WASHINGTON STATE SUPREME COURT ALLOWS COOKE AQUACULTURE TO FARM STERILE STEELHEAD IN STATE’S WATERS https://columbiabasinbulletin.org/washington-state-supreme-court-allows-cooke-aquaculture-to-farm-sterile-steelhead-in-states-waters/
— CBB, January 8, 2021, WASHINGTON DOE REVISES PERMITS ALLOWING COOKE AQUACULTURE TO RAISE STERILE, ALL-FEMALE STEELHEAD IN PUGET SOUND, HTTPS://COLUMBIABASINBULLETIN.ORG/WASHINGTON-DOE-REVISES-PERMITS-ALLOWING-COOKE-AQUACULTURE-TO-RAISE-STERILE-ALL-FEMALE-STEELHEAD-IN-PUGET-SOUND/
— CBB, Dec. 4, 2019, ATLANTIC SALMON NET PEN COLLAPSE: COOKE AQUACULTURE AGREES TO PAY WILD FISH CONSERVANCY $2.75 MILLION IN SETTLEMENT, https://www.www.www.columbiabasinbulletin.org/atlantic-salmon-net-pen-collapse-cooke-aquaculture-agrees-to-pay-wild-fish-conservancy-2-75-million-in-settlement/
— CBB, October 10, 2019, “WDFW Seeks Comments On Cooke Aquaculture Proposal For Farming Sterile Steelhead In Puget Sound,” https://www.www.www.columbiabasinbulletin.org/wdfw-seeks-comments-on-cooke-aquaculture-proposal-for-farming-sterile-steelhead-in-puget-sound/
— CBB, April 30, 2019, “Cooke Aquaculture To Pay Full Penalty For Fish Pen Collapse In Puget Sound,” https://www.www.www.columbiabasinbulletin.org/cooke-aquaculture-to-pay-full-penalty-for-fish-pen-collapse-in-puget-sound/
— CBB, August 30, 2018, “WDFW Authorizes Cooke Aquaculture To Transfer Atlantic Salmon To Puget Sound Net Pens,” https://www.www.www.columbiabasinbulletin.org/wdfw-authorizes-cooke-aquaculture-to-transfer-atlantic-salmon-to-puget-sound-net-pens/
— CBB, December 1, 2017, “Wild Fish Conservancy Sues Cooke Aquaculture Over Atlantic Salmon Fish Farm Escape,” https://www.www.www.columbiabasinbulletin.org/wild-fish-conservancy-sues-cooke-aquaculture-over-atlantic-salmon-fish-farm-escape/
— CBB, October 6, 2017, “Washington Gov. Asks Cooke Aquaculture To Withdraw Request To Transfer One Million Atlantic Salmon,” https://columbiabasinbulletin.org/washington-gov-asks-cooke-aquaculture-to-withdraw-request-to-transfer-one-million-atlantic-salmon/
— CBB, Sept. 22, 2017, “Escaped Atlantic Salmon Continue To Be Caught; WDFW Says Fish Not Expected To Establish Themselves” https://www.www.www.columbiabasinbulletin.org/439602.aspx