Senators want US Army Corps of Engineers to fix aquaculture permit backlog

U.S. senators are calling on the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to put together a plan to address a backlog of aquaculture permit applications.

Shellfish aquaculture projects typically require approval from the Corps, which will ensure their compliance with U.S. environmental laws. According to a 2019 report conducted by the Government Accountability Office (GAO), a Congressional watchdog organization, the Corps received 3,751 applications from 2012 through 2017.

Most shellfish aquaculture permits are approved by the Corps. According to the GAO, only 1 percent of the applications it received in that five-year period were rejected. 87 percent were approved, and the remainder were withdrawn...
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