AUTHOR=Buck Bela H. , Bjelland Hans V. , Bockus Abigail , Chambers Michael , Costa-Pierce Barry Antonio , Dewhurst Tobias , Ferreira Joao G. , Føre Heidi Moe , Fredriksson David W. , Goseberg Nils , Holmyard John , Isbert Wolf , Krause Gesche , Markus Till , Papandroulakis Nikos , Sclodnick Tyler , Silkes Bill , Strand Åsa , Troell Max , Wieczorek Daniel , van den Burg Sander W. K. , Heasman Kevin G. 

TITLE=Resolving the term “offshore aquaculture” by decoupling “exposed” and “distance from the coast”

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Aquaculture

VOLUME=Volume 3 - 2024

YEAR=2024

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/aquaculture/articles/10.3389/faquc.2024.1428056

DOI=10.3389/faquc.2024.1428056

ISSN=2813-5334

ABSTRACT=The terms "offshore" and "open ocean" have been used to describe aquaculture sites that are further from the coast or in higher energy environments. Neither term has been clearly defined in the scientific literature nor in a legal context, and the terms are often used interchangeably. These and other related terms (for example "exposed", "high-energy") variously refer to aspects of a site such as the geographic distance from shore or infrastructure, the level of exposure to large waves and strong currents, the geographic fetch, the water depth, or some combination of these parameters. PAGE \* Arabic \* MERGEFORMAT 3 Key differences and the importance of these terms are discussed that affect various interest groups. Follow-up articles in this compilation from scientific members of the WGOOA as well as other scientists outside ICES are incorporated that develop a set of definitions and a rigorous exposure index.