OC's CIMRI FACILITY BREAKS GROUND FOR $150,000 EXPANSION PROJECT
Friends and supporters of the Channel Islands Marine Resource Institute (CIMRI) cheered as organizers broke ground on Saturday, June 2, for a $150,000 expanded facility at the Port Hueneme Aquaculture Park, formerly part of the Naval Civil Engineering Laboratory at Port Hueneme.
According to CIMRI board member Dr. Lori Buckley, OC marine biology instructor, a vintage bungalow that was once part of the Coast Guard station of the Hueneme Lighthouse will be remodeled for classroom and lab use. Expanded seawater tanks will be located next to the existing warehouse facility in which more than 1 million white abalone larvae will be cultivated for eventual restoration of the fisheries off the Ventura County coast.
The white abalone was the first marine invertebrate to be listed on the endangered species list, said Tom McCormick, CIMRI’s Vice President of Operations. “Now we have more abalone in cultivation than there are in the wild,” he said during the groundbreaking ceremony.
When CIMRI was established in 1998 by Oxnard College, the United Anglers and Proteus Sea Farms, its primary function was to educate the public about marine life and to raise white sea bass, calico and kelp sea bass for fisheries restoration. Although CIMRI has received grant help from Reliant Energy and the state, funds are still needed to complete the expansion.
CIMRI offers internships and classes in aquaculture, marine life and ocean studies through Oxnard College. The institute is also open to students to tour the facilities, including the spawning tanks and touch tanks where visitors can meet starfish, sea cucumbers and baby sharks. |
