BAQUA 2016: ANNUAL AQUAPONICS CONVENTION
Benz Kotzen University of Greenwich COST FA1305 ‘The EU Aquaponics Hub - Realising Sustainable Integrated Fish and Vegetable Production for the EU’
Aquaponics is an innovative, sustainable food production system integrating aquaculture with hydroponic vegetal crops. Aquaponics has a key role to play in food provision and tackling global challenges such as water scarcity, food security, urbanization, and reductions in energy use and food miles. The EU acknowledges these challenges through its Common Agriculture Policy and policies on Water Protection, Climate Change, and Social Integration. A European approach is required in the globally emerging aquaponics research field building on the foundations of Europe’s status as a global centre of excellence and technological innovation in the domains of aquaculture and hydroponic horticulture. The EU Aquaponics Hub aims to the development of aquaponics in the EU, by leading the research agenda through the creation of a networking hub of expert research and industry scientists, engineers, economists, aquaculturists and horticulturalists, and contributing to the training of young aquaponic scientists. The EU Aquaponics Hub focuses on three primary systems in three settings; 1)’ in cities and urban areas’ - urban agriculture aquaponics, 2) ‘in developing countries ‘ – developing systems for local people and 3)’in industry’ - industrial scale aquaponics’ - providing competitive systems delivering cost effective, healthy and sustainable local food in the EU.
Background / Problem statement: •EU Aquaponics is at a crossroads – Coordinate and become a world focus of expertise or be left behind. •Understand current EU expertise and use capabilities in aquaculture and hydroponics to innovate
The MOU
Objectives of FA1305 The purpose of the network is to: 1. BROADEN EXPERTISE; 2. REVIEW AND CONSOLIDATE KNOWLEDGE; 3. DEVELOP COMMON STANDARDS AND RESEARCH 4. INNOVATE; and 5. EDUCATE.
1. AQUAPONICS IN THE DEVELOPING WORLD • Providing local nutrition in rural, semi-rural and urban areas.
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THIS IS THE BIG WHY
Managing drought for more profitable livelihoods
France Corsica Italy Sardini a Sicily Pantelleria Tunisia Malta Lampedusa
Kibera slum, Nairobi
Coupled v. Decoupled
LSS – Life support system = filtration What produce is more important, fish or plants? http://www.coloradoaquaponics.com/announcements/aquaponicsystemdecoupling
• • • •
RESEARCH Science Technology Society Commercial Viability
AQUAPONICS • AQUAculture • hydroPONICS •
The earliest modern reference to hydroponics (last 100 years) was by a man named William Frederick Gericke. While working at the University of California, Berkeley, he began to popularize the idea that plants could be grown in a solution of nutrients and water instead of soil.
Planet Thanet - Thanet Earth/
Planet Thanet - Thanet Earth/ 2 SHIPS ENGINES: • POWER TO LOCAL VILLAGES AND HOUSES • CO2 FRO ENGINES INTO GREEN HOUSE • HEAT FROM ENGINES INTO GREEN HOUSE • LIGHTING FROM ENGINES FOR GREENHOUSE EVERY ASPECT IS HONED TO PERFECTION!
Thanet Earth, Kent, UK
Thanet Earth, Kent, UK
Planet Thanet - Thanet Earth/
CAN AQUAPONICS COMPETE WITH THIS? So the big research question is: COUPLED OR DECOUPLED?
Coupled v. Decoupled No return
LSS – Life support system = filtration What produce is more important, fish or plants? http://www.coloradoaquaponics.com/announcements/aquaponicsystemdecoupling
Tycho Vermeulen, Plant Research International. Subdivision, Wageningen, Netherlands
Tomatoes and pike perch Tom Beyers – Provinciaal Proefcentrum voor de Groenteteelt Oost-Vlaanderen Vzw, Belgium
University of Ljubljana, Biotechnical faculty Agronomy department
IBC (Intermediate Bulk Container) aquaponic system for research on plants and bacterial communities. It was as set up for the project funded by Slovene Human Resources Develepoment and Scholarship Fund
Paul Kledal, Copenhagen, Denmark Particular reserach on communities And funding and commericial viabilityy
MARIPONICS
Marsh samphire - Gavin Burnell, University College, Cork, Ireland
Seaweed aquaponics – Gavin Burnell, University College, Cork, Ireland
Agnes Joly - LOLYMER
Paris. Tested aquaponics, bioponics and hydroponics. My main results : 1000 visitors per year, 3 TV programs, 2 radio, and 7 popular written journals (Paris and national) and I found partners to initiate a larger project for 20 tons aquaculture in aquaponics
Commercial aquaponics production and profitability: Findings from an international survey David C. Lovea, b, , , Jillian P. Frya, b, Ximin Lic, Elizabeth S. Hilld, Laura Genelloa, b, Ken Semmense, Richard E. Thompsonc
The purpose of this research was to document the production methods, crop and fish yields, and profitability of commercial aquaponics in the United States (US) and internationally. An online survey was used for data collection, and 257 respondents met the inclusion criteria for the study. Eighty-one percent of respondents lived in the US, and the remaining respondents were from 22 other countries. The median year that respondents had begun practicing aquaponics was 2010. A total of 538 full-time workers, 242 part-time workers, and 1720 unpaid workers or volunteers were employed at surveyed organizations. The most commonly raised aquatic animals by percent were tilapia (69%), ornamental fish (43%), catfish (25%), other aquatic animals (18%), perch (16%), bluegill (15%), trout (10%), and bass (7%).
Commercial aquaponics production and profitability: Findings from an international survey David C. Lovea, b, , , Jillian P. Frya, b, Ximin Lic, Elizabeth S. Hilld, Laura Genelloa, b, Ken Semmense, Richard E. Thompsonc The most frequently raised plants among commercial producers were as follows: basil (Ocimum basilicum, 81% of respondents), salad greens (76%), non-basil herbs (73%), tomatoes (Solanum lycopersicum, 68%), head lettuce (Lactuca sativa, 68%), kale (Brassica oleracea, 56%), chard (Beta vulgaris subspecies cicla, 55%), bok choi (Brassica rapa subspecies chinensis, 51%), peppers (Capsicum annuum, 48%), and cucumbers (Cucumis sativus, 45%). By pairing plant and fish harvests by respondent, we observed that production was skewed towards plants (Appendix B). There appears to be an economic and a biological basis for the focus on plant production. Crops, such as herbs and salad greens have a higher farm gate price than fish, such as tilapia. Crops can reach harvestable size sooner than fish, allowing for multiple plantings in the same year. In addition, the biomass conversion ratio for crops is better than fish; as much as 9 kg of lettuce can be grown using fish manure from 1 kg of fish feed (personal communication, Ryan Chatterson, Chatterson Farms, Florida), while feed conversation ratios for fish are closer to 1:1.
Searching for an aquaponic princess
Love DC, Fry JP, Genello L, Hill ES, Frederick JA, et al. (2014) An International Survey of Aquaponics Practitioners. PLoS ONE 9(7): e102662. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0102662 Searching for an aquaponic princess Report from Work Group 11*: COST FA 1305 Summary
Our main conclusion is that a European aquaponist is quite unique if she happens to be female, under 30 years old, knows about plant and fish diseases, has money to invest and is producing more than 100 kg of fish and plants to help improve consumer health and people's sense of community, i.e., we need an Aquaponic princess.
Regarding funding, most (70%) partners receive subsidies from government grants and only a few (14%) use aquaponics as their primary production. Approximately 60% of partners have invested less than â‚Ź5000 in their system, although two partners have invested between â‚Ź100,000-500,000. In terms of sales, 80% do not sell their products while two partners sell over â‚Ź10,000 worth. Some final questions were related to why members were using aquaponics. Most people stated that their main priority with aquaponics is sustainability (1 thought that faith based reasons were a very important priority for doing aquaponics), and very few (1 partner each) mentioned the importance of food, health, or community. In terms of knowledge in different fields, more members expressed a lack of experience in plant and fish diseases.
RESEARCH – PAPERS
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Goddek, S., Schmautz Z., Scott, B., Delaide, B., Wuertz, S., Junge, R. (2016). The Effect of Anaerobic and Aerobic Fish Sludge Supernatant on Hydroponic Lettuce. Agronomy 2016, 6(2), 37; doi: 10.3390/agronomy6020037. Konig, B., Junge, R., Bittsanszky, A., Villarroel, M., & Komives, T. (2016). On the sustainability of aquaponics. Ecocycles, 2(1), 26-32. Joly, A., Junge, R., & Bardocz, T. (2015). Aquaponics business in Europe: some legal obstacles and solutions. Ecocycles, 1(2), 3-5.
AQUAPONICS IN DESERT AREAS The Future for Combined Aquaculture and Hydroponics in Arid Areas Dr Benz Kotzen School of Architecture and Construction The University of Greenwich, London The Third International Conference on Drylands, Deserts and Desertification: The Route to Restoration Ben Gurion University of the Negev November 8-11, 2010
SALINE AQUAPONICS
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SO WHAT ELSE? CLOSING THE LOOP Sustainability: • Local • Materials • Minimal Inputs • Maximum outputs but minimum / no pollution
Algae production at BGU
Algae production at BGU
Algae Apartment block Hamburg
Algae Apartment block Hamburg
University of Greenwich Green Roofs and Living Walls Centre
University of Greenwich Green Roofs and Living Walls Centre
University of Greenwich Green Roofs and Living Walls Centre
University of Greenwich Green Roofs and Living Walls Centre
Exotic / niche produce
CITIZEN SCIENCE & SCHOOLS
These are the first CITIZEN SCIENCE PROJECTS: Which Plant Cultivars Grow Best in Aquaponics?. Participants will be asked to fill in a survey sheet about which cultivars grow best under their own particular conditions. You will need to record information about your systems, water parameters, fish types, growing period and plants densities etc. The scope of the project and the data collection procedures will be provided to participants before the start of the research project. This research project will become active on the 1st of October 2016.
CITIZEN SCIENCE & SCHOOLS
The Benefits of Intercropping in Aquaponics: Intercropping/companion planting can improve the level of polyphenols (antioxidants) in plants, which are important for both the health of the plants and for those that eat the plants. Participants will intercrop their standard crops with Red Chicory (high in polyphenols) which is cheap to buy and monitor the effect this has, if any, on the other plants. This research project will become active on the 1st of October 2016. The precise scientific procedures and data collection methods will be provided to participants before the start of the research project.
The next focus in Architecture is
‘biophilia’ integrating nature into architecture Including food production
AECOM – Futuris7c Conceptual City Space
AECOM – Futurist Aquaponics
Ken Yeang
High Rise Composite Living
Bosco Verticale- Milano
Bosco Verticale- Milano
Bosco Verticale- Milano
Adaptive Production – ‘the new pick your own’
AQUAPONICS IS
‘COOL’ Thank you