About
The Interagency Working Group on Aquaculture (IWG-A) serves as the federal interagency coordinating group to increase the overall effectiveness and productivity of federal aquaculture research, regulations, technology transfer, and assistance programs. The IWG-A functions under the Life Sciences Subcommittee (LSSC) of the Committee on Science (CoS) of the National Science and Technology Council (NSTC) in the Executive Office of the President. The IWG-A convenes quarterly meetings to identify emerging issues and needed multi-agency actions, develop and assess progress on action items and activities that address these issues, and engage with invited speakers from the U.S. aquaculture community to strengthen and focus the federal aquaculture agenda for better service to stakeholders and the public.
The IWG-A (formerly the Joint Subcommittee of Aquaculture) was active prior to 1980 but was officially enacted by federal statute under Sec. 6 of the National Aquaculture Act of 1980 (Public Law 96-362, 94 Stat. 1198, 16 U.S.C. 2801, et seq.)) and amended in the National Aquaculture Improvement Act of 1985, (Public Law 99-198, 99 Stat. 164). This 1985 amendment of the 1980 Act designated the Secretary of Agriculture as the permanent Chairman of the coordinating group.
The IWG-A supports Sec. 2(c) of the National Aquaculture Act of 1980 which states: “It is, therefore, in the national interest, and it is the national policy, to encourage the development of aquaculture in the United States.”
The IWG-A accomplishes its work through interagency Task Forces or Working Groups acting as fast-track action committees, chartered by the LSSC, to perform specific tasks and functions. These Task Forces and Working Groups consist of representatives from federal agencies with specific authorities and missions relating to the specific issues to be addressed and function to effectively communicate and coordinate specific actions and activities to benefit the US aquaculture industry. These Task Forces and Working Groups usually have a specific end point; others are ongoing to address the ever-changing regulatory climate and changing needs of the industry.
