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BOOK 101 PAGE 66 2 substrate covers the netting, and the clams will also actively bury themselves in the substrate. Under optimal conditions. the netting "- and the clams are not exposed above the substrate. Under special circumstances, additional protection may be necessary in the form of more rigid netting, trays, or heavy mesh netting. Often, additional protection is desired to reduce predation. on vulnerable seed stocks. Harvesting may be accomplished by rinsing the net bags and raising them individually to a tending vessel. In cases where large areas are covered by nets, the nets -are removed.and the clams are harvested by hand or by raking. Harvesting will generally require the greatest amount of labor. Hard clams must be harvested according to the standards and policies established to protect Public health. An economic analysis of hard clam aquaculture was performed on 2 -acre submerged land leases in Levy County, Florida (Adams et al., 1.993). The assumptions used in this analysis can be used as a basis for similar hypothetical operations iii" the Indian River. Production assumptions for the nursery and growout process include: 1) a maximum two-year production cycle; a) nursery phase requires 3 months; b) growout phase requires 12-15 months; 2) a harvest period of 5-6 months; 3) production will probably be completed in phases, (acreage is put into production over a period of years depending upon the amount of acreage;) 4) survival rates were calculated at a) 75% for the nursery -phase, and b) 85% for the production phase. The analysis suggests that a two -acre hard clam aquaculture operation can produce 637,000- clams per year and realize a net return of about $25,000 per year. Increasing the scale of the opera ion by two acres should not substantially affect these assumptions. Mechanical Harvesting Devices Currently, the mechanical harvesting of hard clams is conducted on a limited and experimental basis only. However, the Department plans to work with the. industry to develop harvesting methods that will not adversely affect water quality, increase turbidity, or increase sedimentation. The Department plans to develop a general permit that would allow harvesting with certain types of mechanical devices. The general permit will provide specifications for the gear and how it is to be used. It is likely that the general permit would not include the use of hydraulic equipment or dredges. Marldng Aquaculture Leases Parcels will be delineated using guidelines and regulations provided by the Department of Environmental Protection, the Florida Marine Patrol, the U.S. Corps of Engineers, and the U. -S. coast Guard. Recent changes in regulations dealing with marking leases will provide the Department of Environmental Protection with flexibility in marking leases. For example, the "Aquaculture Use Zone" could be marked by informative signs placed at the corners. Informative signs would alert boaters to potential hazards and access routes. The size of the signs and the information that they display can be determined based on need. Individual leases within the aquaculture use zone could be marked using stakes that contain information pertinent to the specific lease. For example, stakes can be used that would not be hazardous to navigation or cause damage if they are inadvertently hit. Certain composite materials provide the necessary strength and flexibility. Additionally, marking the lease corners with these stakes will make them more difficult to see when viewed from a distance. When viewed from right angles, the signs are almost transparent: the dimension of the stake is about 4 inches by 1/4 inches. Marking individual leases with stakes, in contrast to using informative signs, will substantially diminish aesthetic impacts. The corner and the lease number can be written vertically on the corner stakes to identify specific leases (ex. WE 31AQ500). 24 JUNE 39 1997 r