The Board of Selectmen has approved the first aquaculture license since the town’s new rules and regulations were passed in November.

Resident Jim O’Dowd has sought a license for more than two years, changing his plans to fit with Mattapoisett’s (then fluid) rules. Now that clear regulations exist, O’Dowd said he had “really narrowed down” the operation for eastern oysters.

Now the Division of Marine Fisheries will conduct a “benthic” survey to identify abundance and diversity of species in the area and determine coordinates for the two-acre proposal more than 460 feet off the coast of Nasketucket Bay State Reservation.

An additional hearing will follow.

The application calls for a location with a depth greater than six feet. He said about ten cages with nine bags each would be used.

Access to the farm would be made via a launch at Sconticut Neck in Fairhaven.

“This will basically be a one-man band,” O’Dowd said at the February 15 hearing. “I don’t intend to make a profit for around five years. As the site [populates], I probably will need to hire people, mainly between June and August—which is a perfect time to hire high school kids.“

The public hearing brought little opposition, with a few questions relating to the size of the project.

Under town rules, no farm can be larger than two acres. O’Dowd said the benthic survey may alter the shape slightly and would be clearly marked with buoys. He also said no lines would span across the area.

O’Dowd’s plan already has approval from the Marine Advisory Board and Harbormaster Horace Field III.

The Selectmen unanimously approved the license pending, results from the Division of Marine Fisheries.

Chair Paul Silva said O’Dowd would be charged the current $25 per acre fee. Silva has led efforts to create a “home rule petition” to increase the fee to $200, which he said was headed to the state legislature soon.

“I want to thank [Jim] for [his] patience and everyone involved,” Silva said. “It’s an application he can live with and the town can live with, only because of the town’s efforts to work together.”