This item was published during the term of a previous administration that ended in April 2007
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Scottish Aquaculture Research Forum
06/05/2004
The Executive today announced funding for the Scottish
Aquaculture Research Forum (SARF).
Deputy Environment and Rural Development Minister Allan
Wilson backed the establishment of the independent charity
with a grant of £100,000 towards operating and research
costs for 2004/05.
The creation of SARF was a key priority in the
Strategic Framework for Scottish Aquaculture. It will
promote, encourage and support research and development in
aquaculture.
SARF has a range of member organisations including
representatives from the aquaculture industry, the public
sector, and environmental NGOs. The board of Directors is
chaired independently by Professor Bill Ritchie of the
University of Aberdeen.
Mr Wilson said:
"We are committed to supporting an aquaculture industry
that is sustainable, diverse and competitive. The work of
SARF will play a key role in delivering this objective.
"The industry supports some 8,600 full-time equivalent
jobs in farmed fish production and processing across
Scotland. These jobs are the lifeblood of many of our rural
communities.
"The establishment of the forum reflects the widely
recognised need for more research to be carried out, not
only in areas that are impacted upon by aquaculture, but
also in areas that impact upon aquaculture.
"I hope that the forum's independent status, coupled
with a balance of different interests will ensure that the
research outcomes benefit both industry and the
environment."
The forum will promote, encourage and support scientific
research and development in aquaculture and related areas.
This includes research in the fields of environmental
impacts, technical and biological cultivation, and health
and welfare science.
It is also hoped to enhance public understanding of
aquaculture through the dissemination of research results
in the public domain. This will include online publication
of investigations and results.
The Ministerial Working Group on Aquaculture, chaired by
Deputy Environment and Rural Development Minister Allan
Wilson, has developed a Strategic Framework which provides
the industry with a set of parameters within which it can
develop sustainably over the next 10 - 15 years.