Site Evaluation

The process of identifying and evaluating different farm sites can be overwhelming. You might look out to sea and wonder where you should even start. In this course we’ll cover the factors that tend to make a site conducive to kelp farming: accessibility, social and cultural context, and environmental suitability. You’ll also find resources that help you determine specifically where kelp farming is allowed in your state and be guided through the process of narrowing it down to a single location.

When you’re going through this process, keep in mind that no one person, business, or entity owns the ocean. It is a shared communal resource that we must all strive to steward and protect. As an ocean farmer, your business is inherently operating in the public commons, which means you’ll need to take steps to ensure that your farm won’t negatively impact existing resources and other uses of the area. Remember that your actions, good or bad, will reflect on the industry as a whole and impact other farmers. This responsibility begins with site evaluation.