This letter seeks information about the Department of the Interior's ("Department") November 29,2012, decision not to allow an oyster farm to continue operating within the Point Reyes National Seashore. The National Park Service ("NPS") has for years been dogged by allegations that the science used to estimate harbor seal disturbances and more recently impacts on the National Seashore's sounds cape do not justify closure of the Drakes Bay Oyster Company, which has provided a sustainable source of shellfish in northern California and employed more than 30 workers. It is imperative that the Department's decision be based in sound science and consistent with federal law.

An oyster farm had operated in Drakes Estero for decades before the Point Reyes National Seashore was established in 1962. A previous owner of the farm sold land to the National Park Service in 1972 but retained permission to continue operating the oyster farm until
2012. In 1976, a portion of the National Seashore was designated wilderness, while the area housing the oyster farm was designated as "potential wilderness." The NPS considers the oyster farm a nonconforming use that is incompatible for a wilderness area.

Read the entire letter HERE.