# Caribbean Fishery Management Council's Mariculture Hybrid Workshop
**AGENCY:**
National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce.
**ACTION:**
Notice of Mariculture Hybrid Workshop (in-person/virtual).
**SUMMARY:**
The Caribbean Fishery Management Council (CFMC) will hold a Mariculture Hybrid Workshop to address the items contained in the tentative agenda included in the *SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION* .
**DATES:**
The Mariculture Hybrid Workshop will be held on March 24, from 8 a.m. to 4:15 p.m., AST, and March 25, 2026, from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., AST.
**ADDRESSES:**
The Mariculture Hybrid Workshop will be held at the Courtyard by Marriott Isla Verde Resort, 7012 Boca de Cangrejos Avenue, Carolina, Puerto Rico.
You may join the Mariculture Hybrid Workshop via Zoom, from a computer, tablet or smartphone by entering the following address:
*Join Zoom Meeting: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/83060685915?pwd=VmVsc1orSUtKck8xYk1XOXNDY1ErZz09.*
*Meeting ID:* 843 2813 0219.
*Passcode:* 856050.
*One tap mobile:*
+17879451488,,83060685915#,,,,,,0#,,995658# Puerto Rico
+17879667727,,83060685915#,,,,,,0#,,995658# Puerto Rico
*Dial by your location:*
+1 787 945 1488 Puerto Rico
+1 787 966 7727 Puerto Rico
+1 939 945 0244 Puerto Rico
*Meeting ID:* 830 6068 5915.
*Passcode:* 995658.
In case there are problems, and we cannot reconnect via Zoom, the meeting will continue using GoToMeeting.
You can join the meeting from your computer, tablet, or smartphone. *https://global.gotomeeting.com/join/971749317.* You can also dial in using your phone. United States: +1 (408) 650-3123 Access Code: 971-749-317.
**FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:**
Miguel A. Rolón, Executive Director, Caribbean Fishery Management Council, 270 Muñoz Rivera Avenue, Suite 401, San Juan, Puerto Rico 00918-1903, telephone: (787) 398-3717.
**SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:**
The following items included in the tentative agenda will be discussed:
**March 24, 2026**
**8 a.m.-8:30 a.m.**
—Workshop Mix and Mingle
**8:30 a.m.-9 a.m.**
—Welcome—Eugenio Piñeiro Soler/Miguel A. Rolón
**9 a.m.-9:15 a.m.**
—Past and Present Aquaculture in the U.S. Caribbean—José A. Rivera
**9:15 a.m.-9:30 a.m.**
—Mariculture Government Efforts in Puerto Rico—Ricardo López
**9:30 a.m.-9:45 a.m.**
—Mariculture Permits and Government Efforts in U.S.V.I.—Nicole Angelí
**9:45 a.m.-10 a.m.**
—Permits, Consultations and Authorizations for Aquaculture Projects in the U.S. Caribbean—Evelyn Cepeda
**10 a.m.-10:15 a.m.**
—Break
**10:15 a.m.-10:45 a.m.**
—Overview of NOAA's Efforts to Increase U.S. Aquaculture Production—Danielle Blacklock
**10:45 a.m.-12 p.m.**
—Current projects in Puerto Rico and USVI (10 mins each)
—Corals and Urchins—Stacey Williams
—Queen Conch—Megan Davis and Raimundo Espinoza
—Spiny Lobster—Caribbean Sustainable Fisheries, Inc.—Nik Sachlikidis
—Oysters—Culebra Fishermen's Association and Isla Mujeres Foundation—N Gómez
—Red Snapper—Cultimar, David Miranda
—Project Siting Environmental Studies in Puerto Rico—Tyler Sclodnick
**12 p.m.-12:30 p.m.**
—Questions and Answers Panel with Presenters (Puerto Rico and U.S.V.I. Projects)
**12:30 p.m.-1:30 p.m.**
—Lunch
**1:30 p.m.-2:30 p.m.**
—Commercial Mariculture in the Caribbean (20 mins each)
—Open Blue Sea Farms, Panama—Jorge Alarcón
—Dyer Aqua Panama—Alcibiades Arauz
—Kilic Dominic, Dominican Republic—Carlos Then
**2:30 p.m.-3 p.m.**
—Questions and Answers Panel with Presenters (Caribbean Commercial Mariculture)
**3 p.m.-3:15 p.m.**
—Break
**3:15 p.m.-4:15 p.m.**
—Discussion/Synthesis Identifying Current Challenges and Barriers to Aquaculture Development in the U.S. Caribbean
**March 25, 2026**
**8 a.m.-8:30 a.m.**
—Workshop Mix and Mingle
**8:30 a.m.-9 a.m.**
—Day One Recap and Day 2 Objectives
**9 a.m.-9:30 a.m.**
—Investing in Aquaculture
—Cuna del Mar
—Hatch Blue
**9:30 a.m.-9:45 a.m.**
—Introduction to SWOT and PESTEL Analysis—Kieley Hurff
**9:45 a.m.-10:45 a.m.**
—SWOT Exercise Focus Groups—Identifying Challenges and Opportunities for Aquaculture Development in the U.S. Caribbean
**10:45 a.m.-11 a.m.**
—Break
**11 a.m.-11:15 a.m.**
—SWOT Exercise Results—Kieley Hurff
**11:15 a.m.-12:30 p.m.**
—PESTEL Exercise Focus Groups; Identifying Challenges and Opportunities for Aquaculture Development in the U.S. Caribbean
**12:30 p.m.-1:30 p.m.**
—Lunch
**1:30 p.m.-2:45 p.m.**
—Discussion: Vision for Aquaculture Development in the U.S. Caribbean
**2:45 p.m.-4 p.m.**
—Workshop Findings Summary and Closing Remarks
—Other Business
—Adjourn
**Note**
(1): Other than starting time and dates of the meetings, the established times for addressing items on the agenda may be adjusted as necessary to accommodate the timely completion of discussion relevant to the agenda items. To further accommodate discussion and completion of all items on the agenda, the meeting may be extended from or completed before the date established in this notice. Changes in the agenda will be posted to the CFMC website, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram as practicable.
**Note**
(2): Financial disclosure forms are available for inspection at this meeting, as per 50 CFR part 601.
The order of business may be adjusted as necessary to accommodate the completion of agenda items. The meeting will begin on March 24, 2026, at 8 a.m., AST, and will end on March 25, 2026, at 4 p.m., AST. Other than the start time on the first day of the meeting, interested parties should be aware that discussions may start earlier or later than indicated in the agenda, at the discretion of the Chair.
*Special Accommodations:* For any additional information on this public hybrid meeting, please contact Diana Martino, Caribbean Fishery Management Council, 270 Muñoz Rivera Avenue, Suite 401, San Juan, Puerto Rico, 00918-1903, telephone: (787) 226-8849.
(Authority: 16 U.S.C. 1801 *et seq.* )
Dated: March 4, 2026.
Rey Israel Marquez,
Acting Deputy Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries, National Marine Fisheries Service.