summary report on offshore aquaculture technology platform regional workshops

SINTEF Fisheries and Aquaculture

Summary report on Offshore Aquaculture Technology Platform

Regional Workshops

Arne Fredheim, SINTEF, Norway

Rosa Fernandez, Cetmar, Spain

Oisin Naughton, Marine Institute, Ireland


Overview Aiming at all types of stakeholders Regional workshops

Presentations Break-out sessions with round table discussions Ireland and UK Spain and Portugal Scandinavia

Questionnaire 23 Questions Four main topics

Vision and Public Perception Technological development Environmental concerns and bio-security Regulation and planning framework


Summary main points Vision and Public Perception

Offshore Aquaculture can provide a solution to meeting the FAO forecast

Environmental concerns and bio-security Sustainable development necessary Escapees a big issue in Scandinavia and Ireland/UK

Technological development Further development of cages, nets etc Focus on safety of personnel

Regulation and planning framework Existing framework adequate? Length of licensing process Site designation – marine spatial planning

Industry structure Large regional differences More biomass in each cage and each location


Response Total of 119 answers

Scandinavia 36 Ireland and UK 44 Spain and Portugal 39

Workshop 111 attendants Scandinavia 26 Ireland and UK 43 Spain and Portugal 42

Good mix of stakeholders Regional differences Producers 30% Professionals 25 – 30%

0 % 5 % 10 % 15 % 20 % 25 % 30 % 35 %

Producers

NGO's

Suppliers

Professional services

Administration

Type of stakeholder Questioner

Scandinavia Ireland and UK Spain and Portugal

0 % 5 % 10 % 15 % 20 % 25 % 30 % 35 %

Producers

NGO's

Suppliers


Administration

Type of stakeholder workshop



Vision and Public Perception

The world need seafood

020406080

100120140160180200

1980 1990 2000 2010 2020 2030Mi

ll. to

ns

Wild capture Aquaculture

Growing gap between supply and demand for seafood products Aquaculture will be increasingly

important (Marra 2005)

Technological development will play a major role in future expansion of the industry FAO (Subasinghe 2003)

Nearly half the fish consumed as food worldwide are raised on fish farms rather than caught in the wild FAO (2007)


83

93

97

75 80 85 90 95 100

Scandinavia

Ireland and UK

Spain and Portugal

Agree or strongly agree

0 20 40 60 80

Policy

Finfish

Shellfish

NGO

Suppliers

Professional

Strongly agree Agree Disagree Strongly disagree


Offshore Aquaculture a possible solution Could Offshore

Aquaculture provide a solution to meeting the FAO forecast?

Total 91% in average agree or strongly agree

Stakeholder perception Ireland and UK 50 % of NGO disagree



Main challenges identified Challenges for development

Technology Safety Cost efficiency

Answers more or less independent of region

Attention to improve public perception

Sustainability Environmental impacts Food safety

Answers more or less independent of region


Technological development

Key issues Present technology sufficient?

Has been and development Further development necessary

Identified three areas

Equipment (cages, nets, moorings)

Technology

New species and disease research


1.00 1.50 2.00 2.50 3.00 3.50 4.00 4.50 5.00

Cage design and equipment

Distance offshore

Accident and emergency services

Personnel training

Personal equipment

Experience

Boat capabilities

Navigation



Safety requirement in Offshore Aquaculture Major issues Cage design and equipment Personal training Personal equipment Accident and emergency

services


Cages

Moo

rings

Nets

Feed

bar

ges

Buoys

Fish

han

dling

Cage

light

ing

1.00

1.50

2.00

2.50

3.00

3.50

4.00

4.50

5.00

Scandinavia

Ireland and UK

Spain and Portugal


Equipment Five points identified Cages Mooring Nets Feed barges Fish handling

But evenly distributed Development needed!


1.00 1.50 2.00 2.50 3.00 3.50 4.00 4.50 5.00

Feeding systems

Communication systems

Environmental monitoring

Stock monitoring equipment

Automated cleaning systems

Navigation technology

Mortality management

Harvesting



Technology

Not so clear across regions single points

Feeding systems Environmental monitoring Automated cleaning systems Stock monitoring equipment Mortality management



Potential new species for OA

Strong regional differences

Sea trout, red sea bream and hake Cod, Common sea bream, Rock Cod

Salmon (Scandinavia and Ireland/UK) Turbot (Spain and Portugal) Sea bass and Tuna (Spain and

Portugal)

22

23

0

15

21

5

15

5

03

12

4

4

4

102

14

17

14

9

14

1

8

0

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

40

45

Salmon Cod,Common

seabream,

Rock Cod

Mussels Turbot Halibut Oysters SeaBass,

Gilthead,Tuna

Sea trout,red seabream,hake

Other

Spain and Portugal

Ireland and UK

Scandinavia


Environmental concerns and bio-security issues

Major impacts

Regional differences Scandinavia: Escapees

Nutrient loading Sustainable feed

Ireland and UK: Sustainable feed Nutrient loading Escapees

Spain and Portugal: More evenly Benthic impact Nutrient loading Escapees


0 % 10 % 20 % 30 % 40 % 50 % 60 % 70 %

Yes

No

Don't know


0 % 10 % 20 % 30 % 40 % 50 % 60 % 70 % 80 % 90 % 100 %

Policy

Finfish Producer

Shellfish Producer

NGO

Suppliers


Yes No Don't know

Environmental concerns and bio-security issues

Will OA mitigate environmental impacts

More than 60% yes No regional differences

Stakeholder perception Ireland and UK


0 % 10 % 20 % 30 % 40 % 50 % 60 %

Yes

No

Don't know


0 % 10 % 20 % 30 % 40 % 50 % 60 % 70 %

Yes

No

Don't know


Regulation and planning framework

Regulatory framework Framework in

place? No clear answer Regional differences

Licensing process

adequate? No

Need attention Length of application Site designation – marine spatial planning


Regulation and planning framework

Important factor in spatial planning

Tools to improve the knowledge gap Predictive modelling Criteria for best available locations EU Water directive

Regulate nutrient release Implications

National Monitoring Programmes


Conclusions Basis for conclusions for OATP

119 answers and 111 attendants Good mix of stakeholders

Offshore Aquaculture can provide a solution Need for marine protein - meeting the FAO forecast Mitigate environmental impacts

Need of technological development Common equipment Communication New species

Need of development of legislative framework Marine spatial planning Site selection

summary report on offshore aquaculture technology platform regional workshops

Documents