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Isles should exploit
aquaculture, expert says

By Helen Altonn
Star-Bulletin

Open-ocean fish farming could be a significant money-maker for Hawaii if the permit process weren't so prohibitive, says Charles Helsley, who recently retired after 23 years at the University of Hawaii.

Helsley directed the Institute of Geophysics for 18 years and headed the Sea Grant College Program the past five years.

Of all his projects, he's most enthused about the results of an open-ocean aquaculture experiment he spearheaded, in which 70,000 Pacific threadfin, or moi, were reared in a sea cage off Ewa.

It shows open-ocean fish farming can be done commercially in coastal zones without harmful impacts, "provided it's done in a responsible way," Helsley said.

"And, it could be a significant increase to our economic base."

Helsley anticipates several applications to the state Department of Land and Natural Resources in the next six months for offshore leases for commercial aquaculture activities.

If the state wants to encourage diversification, however, the permit process must be simplified to make it possible to get a decision rapidly, Helsley said, noting the present regulatory regime is "totally stifling us."

"We must decrease this number of hoops everybody has to jump through," he said. "It's not the cost of doing business here that is too high; the start-up costs are too high.

"You can spend millions before you get to first base in trying to get a permit here, as witnessed by the geothermal industry years ago."

To encourage offshore aquaculture, it must be a priority in the permitting process, Helsley said, describing the potential for a lucrative new industry.

Aquaculture is a $4 billion industry worldwide, but the U.S. has a $7 billion deficit in seafood, Helsley said. "It's the second largest deficit to oil in our national economy, (because) we import so much seafood."

Hawaii should take a lead in growing and exporting seafood, he said, pointing out Australia had no offshore fish farming or mariculture 10 years ago but now has a $400 million-a-year gross product. It's expected to reach $1 billion in five years, Helsley said.

During his years at the helm of the Institute of Geophysics, Helsley said he saw an "also-ran" oceanographic institution become one of the top three or four in the country.

That was a high point in his career, he said. "There's a high point and a counter point, if you wish," he added, expressing disappointment that the growth and status of ocean research didn't get as much support in the past 10 years as it should have.

"We've tended to downplay the importance of research, of understanding our natural environment, in the last five years, both in state funding and university funding and policy."

Helsley attributes this partly to Hawaii's ailing economy, but says it's also "a leadership issue," involving recognition of the UH's research role, at least on the Manoa campus.

E. Gordon Grau, former interim director of the Hawaii Institute of Marine Biology, has replaced Helsley as Sea Grant Program director.

Jack Davidson, Helsley's predecessor who retired in 1995 as Sea Grant director, has been appointed a part-time associate Sea Grant director.

Helsley said he decided to get out of the administrative side of things to pursue science and other things of interest.

Leading the Sea Grant Program was "a fun job" because the national office has given the program a lot of local autonomy, he said. "It meant that we could structure the program to serve the local needs more than to serve the national needs."

Grau said Sea Grant is "a major conduit that connects the university to the whole community" through research, education and outreach.

"That's something I really enjoy doing, interacting with the community, finding out what the needs are and being a catalyst within the university to address those needs," Grau said.