Interagency Working Group on Research for Farming of Seaweeds and Seagrasses

Congressional Appropriation Bill FY2019 SEC. 770. called for a:

WORKING GROUP ON RESEARCH FOR FARMING OF SEAWEEDS AND SEAGRASSES

This working group, chaired by the USDA’s Agricultural Research Service and operating in partnership with the Bigelow Laboratory for Ocean Sciences, will develop a report that identifies gaps in research related to the capacity for seaweeds and seagrasses to de-acidify the oceans and opportunities to use farmed seaweeds and seagrasses as feedstock for other commercial uses.

Progress:

• Just announced: CLICK HERE to register for the upcoming virtual Workshop Series on Farming Seaweeds and Seagrasses In Waters of the United States
• Convened four virtual stakeholder meetings where more than 150 attendees provided feedback and updates on local seagrass and seaweed aquaculture projects and research needs
• Compiled elicited feedback from stakeholders to guide the drafting of the report to Congress
• Administered three $100K awards for pilot-scale research related to appropriations bill guidelines

Next Steps:

• Monitor our six $100K awards for pilot-scale research and incorporate their efforts into the drafting of the report to Congress
• Engage subject matter experts through a second series of virtual engagement sessions
• Assist preparation of final report and other printed outputs

More About the Interagency Working Group:

The Interagency Working Group for Farming Seaweeds and Seagrasses has 46 members representing 8 Departments/Agencies from 25 Offices/Divisions including USDA, DOC, EPA, DOD, HHS, DOE, NSF, and DOI.

More About Awarded Pilot Project Research:

Our six funded demonstration projects are:

• “Carbon Capture & Deacidification by Marine Seaweeds” out of Oregon State University
• “Use of seaweed to protect shellfish farming from ocean acidification” out of the Marine Biological Laboratory
• “Evaluate the potential ocean acidification mitigation effects from sugar kelp growth in a Point Judith, RI kelp farm” out of the University of Rhode Island
• “Leveraging the sustainability of Macrocystis pyrifera as a feedstock to produce ingredients for food, animal, and industrial applications” out of the University of California, Davis
• “Offshore Platform-based Macroalgae Production” out of the Gulf of Offshore Research
• “Bull kelp farm improvements to enable scaling of innovative food products” out of the Alaska Fisheries Development Foundation