Shellfish proposed as solution to fish farm waste

CANADA - A University of Victoria researcher says shellfish and kelp may be the key to reducing pollution from B.C.'s fish farms.

Stephen Cross, president of aquaculture research company Aquametrix, has received a $200,000 Aquaculture and Environment Innovation Award from the B.C. Innovation Council for a five-year pilot project that will investigate whether growing a range of other species close to fish farms might help reduce the environmental impacts of organic waste from the farms.

Using a practice commonly termed polyculture, Cross plans to grow several species -- including shellfish, kelp and sea cucumbers -- in close proximity to an open netcage fish farm in Kyuquot Sound, off the northwest coast of Vancouver Island. He'll examine the effectiveness of these species in assimilating organic waste produced by the farm and hopes that eventually the additional species can be sold to generate additional revenue from farming operations.

"Our concept is don't waste the waste," said Cross. "We're working on generating economic value by creating an environmental solution. It's an old and simple concept. We're trying to assess its application in a new context."

Source: Esquimalt News