John C. Miller III of Susan has applied for an after-the-fact permit from the Virginia Marine Resources Commission to retain up to 200 aquaculture floats currently in place over 2,400 square feet of bottom in Horn Harbor.

According to Ben Stagg, chief engineer with VMRC, Miller was granted a permit in 2009 for up to 1,200 floating cages and mesh oyster bags near Horn Harbor Marina. Miller paid for the permit and the first year’s royalty, said Stagg, but he hasn’t paid the required royalty payment of $413.75 a year since then, which is a violation of his permit.

Stagg said that some of the apparatus is still deployed, and that the agency sent Miller a letter in March requesting payment. Miller was told he could remove all of the cages and reapply for a permit and no further action would be taken, or if he had product that wouldn’t be easy to remove, he could submit an after-the-fact application, which is subject to public comment and review by the commission. He chos...