A new method has been devised of shellfish farming in open waters to help reverse the decline in growth in the industry.
Shellfish farming is an important component of the EU aquaculture sector, yet growth has slowed due to global competition, saturation of areas where farming is viable, lack of phytoplankton and predation by other species.
In response the OpenMode project, launched by Research & Development Concretes and Prefabricados Formex has developed floating connectable modules for intensive shellfish farming in open waters, which can be used either in the Atlantic, the Mediterranean or the North and Baltic Sea Basins.
Esteban Camacho, director of innovation at DRC explained more. “Our purpose is to demonstrate the efficiency and functionality of the proposed modules in different wave conditions, responding to the need for an intensive breeding system in open water,” he said.
The modules are built of Formex, a compact, inorganic material which does not require coatings and causes no harm to water quality. The modules have remote sensors that control on-site parameters such as water, weather and structure conditions, as well as shellfish growth. Data is then collected giving an insight into which factors affect growth rate.
Four tailor-made modules are currently being tested in different conditions. If the tests prove successful, OpenMode structures could be replicated throughout the EU.
It is hoped that the system might generate new jobs in the end-to-end shellfish value chain as well as being an efficient tool to reduce eutrophication, whereby an excess of nutrients produces harmful algae blooms.
