Sea-based aquaculture is a growing industry in Atlantic Canada. It’s also controversial, with concerns about pollution produced at coastal aquaculture sites.
At the College of the North Atlantic’s Wave Energy Research Centre, in Burin Bay Arm, N.L., researchers Michael Graham and Leon Fiander are working to develop land-based aquaculture technology.

Graham and Fiander’s aquaculture research involves two goals: building a wave-powered pump to deliver water cheaply to land-based aquaculture farms, as well as a system to ensure the on-land production is environmentally sustainable.

Specifically, the pair is developing a pilot facility where effluent from fish tanks will flow down through tanks holding other sea creatures, such as sea urchins and scallops. That “cascade” approach will help filter the water and support other creatures that could be sold or used as feed.

As Graham notes, the approach will also remove a large portion of the organic pollutants typically associated with fish farming before the water is returned to the sea.

The five-year project, now in its third year, is funded with $3.1 million from the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council, the Research and Development Corp., and the province’s Department of Innovation, Business and Rural Development.
Graham says land-based aquaculture enterprises could be an economic driver for traditional fishing communities. “In addition to possibly enabling the development of a new industry, this project will leave a lasting scientific, technical and economic legacy in the region,” he says. “The project represents a significant increase in research activity for Burin campus and the college as a whole.”