Spatial planning is key to establishing shellfish and seaweed farms in ports and benefitting local communities and environments, says a new study

Over the years, there has been much focus on the coexistence of offshore renewable energy and aquaculture, two rapidly growing industries that share a common resource: the ocean. Bringing these two industries together has the potential to generate economic, environmental, and social benefits, while addressing multiple challenges from food scarcity to climate change.

The same could be said for aquaculture and maritime ports. As ocean-based industries continue to expand, careful spatial planning is important to reconcile existing ocean uses and manage environmental impacts effectively. In January 2024, a team of marine spatial planning researchers from the NOAA National Centers for Coastal Ocean Science (NCCOS) and the Port of San Diego released a study on spatial planning methods for aquaculture siting.