Capron, M.E. and Blaylock,, B. and Lucas, K. and Chambers, M.D. and Stewart, J.R. and DiMarco, S.F. and Whilden, K. and Wang, B. and Kim, M.H. and De Ramon N'Yeurt, Antoine and Webb, C. and Moscicki, Z. and Sullivan, C. and Tsukrov, I. and Swift, M.R. and James, S.C. and Brooks, M. and Howden, S. and Fredericq, S. and Krueger-Hadfield, S.A. and Piper, D. (2019) Ocean forests: breakthrough yields for macroalgae. [Conference Proceedings]
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Abstract
The US Department of Energy Advanced Research Projects Agency - Energy (ARPA-E) MacroAlgae Research Inspiring Novel Energy Research (MARINER) program is encouraging technologies for the sustainable harvest of large funding research of macroalgae for biofuels at less than $80 per dry metric ton (DMT). The Ocean Forests team, led by the University of Southern Mississippi, is developing a complete managed ecosystem where nutrients are transformed and recycled. The team’s designs address major bottlenecks in profitability of offshore aquaculture systems including economical moored structures that can withstand storms, efficient planting, managing and harvesting systems, and sustainable nutrient supply. The work is inspired by Lapointe who reported yields of Gracilaria tikvahiae equivalent to 127 DMT per hectare per year (compared with standard aquaculture systems in the range of 20 to 40 DMT/ha/yr). This approach offers the potential for breakthrough yields for many macroalgae species. Moreover, mini-ecosystems in offshore waters create communities of macroalgae, shellfish, and penned finfish, supplemented by visiting free-range fish that can increase productivity, produce quality products, and create jobs and income for aquafarmers. Additional benefits include reduced disease in fish pens, cleaning contaminated coastal waters, and
maximizing nutrient recycling. Cost projections for a successful, intensive, scaled system are competitive with current prices for fossil fuels.
| Item Type: | Conference Proceedings |
|---|---|
| Uncontrolled Keywords: | ocean afforestation, seaweed, algae, yield, breakthrough, cultivation, aquaculture, climate change, biofuel |
| Subjects: | Q Science > Q Science (General) Q Science > QH Natural history > QH301 Biology |
| Divisions: | Pacific Centre for Environment and Sustainable Development (PACE-SD) |
| Depositing User: | Antoine N'Yeurt |
| Date Deposited: | 01 Jul 2020 02:49 |
| Last Modified: | 02 Jul 2020 02:56 |
| URI: | https://repository.usp.ac.fj/id/eprint/11068 |
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