Examining Aquaculture

By Janine Unsoeld

Thank you to everyone who participated and attended our SPEECH annual meeting held in late March at Traditions Fair Trade in downtown Olympia. For me, organizing the event was, admittedly, a grueling and time consuming process - a real eye opener into the topic of shellfish aquaculture.

SPEECH greatly appreciates Bill Dewey of Taylor Shellfish for keeping his commitment to participate. His presentation and the question and answer session that followed was highly informative. We also thank SPEECH intern and Evergreen State College student Kevin Petrie for presenting information that also added to the ensuing conversation.

Several local shellfish farmers were in attendance, as well as longtime SPEECH members SPEECH has not had much contact with prior to the event, two Olympia city councilmembers who were there as private citizens, a former Olympia mayor, several former SPEECH board members, and one of our founders.

The resulting conversation was diverse, civil, and balanced. Many issues, such as the delicate relationship between small shellfish businesses and Taylor Shellfish, were explored.

Although a quality group was present, I also received several emails from our members and scheduled participants who sent their regrets. Since no one evening can capture the entirety of such a complicated, ongoing issue, SPEECH looks forward to examining shellfish aquaculture issues in the future through public forums and the South Sound Green Pages. Your participation is appreciated!

And of course, the cake was great!