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 Charting Future of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences at Auburn University
Auburn,
May 5, 2003
--- More
than 70 years ago, Homer Swingle began his pioneering work in
fisheries at Auburn University. Thanks to Swingle and other early
professors, Auburn University’s program became the acknowledged
national leader in aquaculture education, extension and research.
“Now we
want to chart our future in the 21st century,” says Dr.
David Rouse, interim department head of Fisheries and Allied
Aquaculture. “We want to develop program priorities as well as
explore creative options for staffing, funding and building efforts.”
The
Department of Fisheries and Allied Aquaculture is hosting a three-day
conference, “Charting the Future of Aquatic Sciences: The Legacy of
Homer Scott Swingle,” May 15 to 17 at the Auburn University Hotel and
Dixon
Conference Center.
The conference will bring together Fisheries faculty and staff with
alumni, aquaculturists, fishery biologists and others in related
aquaculture fields.
“We
will take some time to look at our successes in
Alabama and the
nation as well as around the globe,” says Rouse. “But perhaps most
importantly we will develop a document that will envision expected
needs, opportunities, constraints and actions for the department to
reach goals and maintain leadership in the aquatic sciences over the
next 20 to 30 years.
Conference fees are $150 for regular registration and $50 for
students. People interested in attending can register online at
http://bece.auburn.edu/CE/#aquatic.
Jesse Chappell, a fisheries specialist with the Alabama Cooperative
Extension System, notes that the department’s leadership in the area
of aquatic sciences has a significant impact on the state’s overall
economy.
Catfish
production is the largest of
Alabama’s
aquaculture efforts, generating more than $80 million in sales in
2002, according to the Alabama Agricultural Statistical Service.
Processing, fishfeeds and equipment sales generate another $200
million. Revenues associated with recreational fishing in Alabama
have been estimated to be over $700 million by the U.S. Fish &
Wildlife Service.
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