Archive for the ‘Environment’ Category


Robotic Offshore Cages – The Future of Fish Farming?

November 24th, 2009 by Hayley
Aquapod© (Source: Ocean Farm Technologies)

Aquapod™ (Source: Ocean Farm Technologies, Inc.)

Sometime ago we posted about heading towards automation self propelled aquaculture cages. Since then, Cliff Goudey, director of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s Offshore Aquaculture Engineering Center, has been working on a project funded by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), which is testing these cages with cobia farming operations in Puerto Rico.

Goudey has equipped an Aquapod™ cage, produced by Maine-based Ocean Farm Technologies, Inc., with a set of propellers, which act as big screws that churn their way through the ocean.

Self Propelled Cage (Source: www.wickedlocal.com)

Self Propelled Cage (Source: www.wickedlocal.com)

Goudey’s technology gives fish farmers a way to rotate cage locations without towing cages behind boats. The cages become mobile fish farms, making ocean depth less of an issue and fouled water quality and low dissolved oxygen content less of a threat by transferring the fish to areas of the ocean never before accessible to fish farming.

Working recently at Snapperfarm Inc., the cobia operation in Puerto Rico, Goudey’s cage has proved itself capable of moving on its own.

For footage of the sea trials in action click here to watch a video.

Click here for more information on this topic.


Marine Antifoul Breakthrough

June 4th, 2009 by Andrew

As we have observed through several articles on this site, fouling of structures and nets is a challenging problem that results in significant costs for aquaculture operators.

A new approach has been developed for marine structures may interest readers.

Read the rest of this page »


Aquaculture Wave Energy

February 19th, 2009 by Hayley

oyster-open-from-below-low-resFollowing on from the discussions on this site about - Aquaculture power: wave energy and other forms of renewable energy - there has been a vital boost to the feasibility of harnessing wave generated power due to a partnership between Aquamarine Power Limited, a marine energy company, and Queen’s University Belfast

They have agreed to a new five-year research partnership, which will develop the next generation hydroelectric wave power converter.

oyster-diagram-low-resTogether they have already created the Oyster® wave power device, designed to capture the energy found in amplified surge forces in near shore waves.

The first prototype is to be launched at sea for the first time this summer at the European Marine Energy Centre of the coast of Orkney.

For more information read the full article here.


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