Top 10 Things You Can Do For Shellfish Permitting - Ocean Strategies

Are you a shellfish farmer in Washington State? Or are you simply interested in aquaculture and want to support the industry in YOUR community – wherever that may be??

As with gleaning the most out of this life, be it shellfish farming, commercial fishing, policy consulting or ACTUAL LIFE – relationships are key. It is the backbone of our small public affairs firm here at Ocean Strategies and it is the baseline in which we thrive with our families, our local communities and surely the working waterfront communities across the United States that we support and uphold. It’s also how Loni *** set the tone for last month’s Pacific Shellfish Growers Association annual meeting.  With that lens in mind, here are the top 10 things you can do to support the local permitting process:

1. Know your message

   The value of having a story about your farm, the benefits of shellfish and your connection to the water and the community is priceless. Make it short, not too technical and paint a clear picture of what is important to YOU.

2. Own your message

   Don’t get sidelined by other agendas. Of course you might get into the weeds with your permits and with regulators, but continue to stick to YOUR core message.

3. Know the local process

   Acquaint yourself with the process in your county/city – you don’t have to know all the details but spend some time getting to know the local process – do you have a marine committee? Who else is in charge of permits?

4. Bookmark online resources / sign up for email lists

   Be it county pages or the newsletter of another farmer across the bay, or even getting connected to a firm like Ocean Strategies* whose whole premise is to set you up for success – be sure to scaffold a supportive, inspiring community.

5. Introduce yourself to county commissioners

   Have a standard note you send to all county commissioners to introduce yourself and your operation.

6. Introduce yourself to county staff

   Self-explanatory and similar to the above but don’t forget that making connections with county staff should not be overlooked.

7. Find a friend

   Here is where that fellow farmer across the bay comes in. Get friendly! I’m sure each of you already have plenty of friends, but it’s helpful to have someone to share information with, ask questions of, and compare notes about what’s happening with permitting

8. Make a list of friends

   Start a list of people that you know/meet/find who are interested in shellfish, have good information or you simply want to stay connected to! Feed them and support them the way you need supported too.

9. Dedicate time

   We realize time is the last thing most farmers have (or really anyone) – but if you can, spend 15 minutes a week checking out county news or reading all of those emails you signed up for.

10. Be patient / don’t give up

    Shellfish permitting is not easy but aquaculture is a rewarding, if not extremely valuable, path that threads our working waterfronts into thriving, connected communities.