Food from the sea (KB-53-000-007)

The seas and oceans are considered a large underutilised source of human resources. One of the most promising ways to increase marine food production is to cultivate low-trophic organisms, such as seaweed and bivalves. Seaweed is a primary producer and depends solely on the natural supply of nutrients such as nitrate and phosphate. Bivalves feed on naturally occurring algae, making them much more efficient users of primary marine production than carnivorous fish, which currently account for the bulk of all marine fisheries and aquaculture. The aim of this project is to develop a mathematical modelling tool that can be used to estimate the carrying capacity of the open sea for low-trophic aquaculture.

 

In this project, we will develop a mathematical model of the ecology and water transport of coastal areas. The model must be capable of estimating the ecological carrying capacity of the Oosterschelde and Voordelta for large-scale cultivation of seaweed and bivalves, or for integrated aquaculture (i.e. seaweed and shellfish combined). A possible interaction between yields from seaweed and shellfish will be investigated. The Oosterschelde-Voordelta area has been chosen as a case study, but the model must also be applicable to other regions and must enable scenario studies to be carried out, for example to identify the best locations for sea farms.