CRMC is Commercializing our Waterways

By Newport This Week Staff | on October 21, 2021

To the Editor:

The stated mission of the Rhode Island Coastal Resources Management Council is to “preserve, protect, develop, and where possible, restore the coastal resources of the state for this and succeeding generations.” This leaves quite a bit of latitude for interpretation, not all of it good.

Some recent questionable actions by the CRMC have led Rep. Deborah Ruggiero to push for an independent panel to study the actions of the CRMC and how the organization may be structured to better serve the needs of the people. As a boater and recreational angler, I commend Rep. Ruggiero for taking on this initiative, but much damage has already been done and more is certain to come long before the panel presents its findings or any reforms are made.

The CRMC has already designated significant areas of our offshore marine habitat for development of wind farms. The lease area in which the Revolution Wind farm will be located is equal to 21 percent of the state’s total land area. The most egregious example is their granting of a lease for a wind farm to a foreign developer on the historically important commercial and recreational fishing grounds of Coxes Ledge. In this instance, the CRMC board voted against their own staff recommendation that the area is inappropriate for commercial development.

Now, the CRMC is turning their attention to our inshore waters ofNarragansett Bay and the Sakonnet River for development of aquaculture leases. Once again, they take a very expansive view of what is appropriate for commercial development while relying on stakeholder objections to individual projects.

The problem with this approach is that the stakeholders are diverse: adjacent property owners, commercial and recreational fishermen and shellfishermen, boaters, sailors, hunters, photographers, kayakers, paddleboarders, bird watchers, swimmers, divers, hikers and anyone who loves our coast and coastal waters. The vast majority of Rhode Island citizens have no idea that their waterways are being commercialized, and fewer still have any idea of how to be notified for possible objection. The system is deeply flawed. Look to the current controversy surrounding aquaculture leases in the Seapowet area of Tiverton as an example of this problem.

The CRMC has also been reluctant to define what might constitute a reasonable objection. Is it 10 anglers or 20 kayakers or 15 property owners and a partridge in a pear tree? More likely, a successful objection may only come from those who can muster significant numbers of citizens and/or afford the best attorneys.

Most important, there seems to be no provision in their calculus for the concept of keeping our coastal areas in their pristine state, as nature intended.

Why do we allow commercialization of our most precious and unique natural resources for little benefit? If you are a member of any of the groups listed above or participate in the tourism, marine trades or other businesses dependent on our rich coastal heritage, you need to get informed and involved before it is too late. The CRMC is not resting, neither should you.

Fred DeFinis

Middletown