🔥Hot off the Press🔥 Kelp (Saccharina latissima) Mitigates Coastal Ocean Acidification and Increases the Growth of North Atlantic Bivalves in Lab Experiments and on an Oyster Farm
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This study was just published this week in the peer-reviewed journal Frontiers in Marine Science. The paper is open-access and free to download - here’s the link: https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fmars.2022.881254/full?&utm_source=Email_to_authors_&utm_medium=Email&utm_content=T1_11.5e1_author&utm_campaign=Email_publication&field=&journalName=Frontiers_in_Marine_Science&id=881254
In this study, we found that photosynthesis by kelp increases the pH of surrounding waters, and consequently mitigates the harmful effects of ocean acidification on nearby bivalves. The results suggest that growing bivalves and kelp together under current or future acidification scenarios may be a synergistically beneficial integrated, multi-trophic aquaculture approach.
@michael_doall - Thank you for posting this!
I'm also curious and looking for research done in the Pacific, should anyone come across studies performed in Northern CA, Oregon, or Washington. I'm also interested in research about the effect of sea greens on fecal coliform bacteria levels. In the areas I'm looking at getting started, agriculture outpaces the seafood production and threatens water quality several times a year, making shellfish for human consumption tricky - presumably this is the case for kelp and seaweed production, or I'll need to be prepared to address this issue to stakeholders.
@danica_sheean - Hi Danica, I’ll keep an eye out for studies related to fecal coliform. One thing I can say is that in the areas I’ve grown kelp around Long Island, NY, it grows very well in areas of high nutrient loading. I currently have kelp growing in heavily impacted waters in the East River near NYC. The kelp here can not be used for food, because of fecal coliform and other potential contaminants, but it could possibly be used in other markets like fertilizer. We will be analyzing the kelp after harvest for biological and chemical contaminants. I’ll post what we find.
@michael_doall - I did find this study on the effect of algal biomass on FC in wastewater
https://link.springer.com/arti...
@danica_sheean - Hi Danica, I’ll keep an eye out for studies related to fecal coliform. One thing I can say is that in the areas I’ve grown kelp around Long Island, NY, it grows very well in areas of high nutrient loading. I currently have kelp growing in heavily impacted waters in the East River near NYC. The kelp here can not be used for food, because of fecal coliform and other potential contaminants, but it could possibly be used in other markets like fertilizer. We will be analyzing the kelp after harvest for biological and chemical contaminants. I’ll post what we find.
@michael_doall - I did find this study on the effect of algal biomass on FC in wastewater
https://link.springer.com/arti...
@michael_doall -Thanks for sharing, Mike! Really interesting paper. Can you speak more to the implications for multi-species farm design? If folks are looking to integrate oysters and kelp on the same farm site, do the two species have to be grown at a certain proximity to one another in order to have the same co-benefits?
@lindsay_olsen - Hi Lindsday. The impacts of kelp and other seaweeds on seawater pH and dissolved oxygen are greatest in the localized waters right around the seaweed, and then dissipate out with distance from the seaweed. This has been referred to as a "Halo effect". In the field experiment in our study, we found higher pH in the center of a four-line kelp array than at a location 50 meters away from those lines. Concurrently, we also found significantly higher growth in oysters placed in the center of the kelp lines than in oysters placed 50 meters away. The results indicate that not only can seaweeds provide crop diversification for shellfish farmers, but can also help improve shellfish crop production. The maximum distance at which seaweeds can impact water quality and shellfish growth are expected to be site dependent, and will depend on factors such as the amount of seaweed being grown, the depth of the water body, and current speeds.
@lindsay_olsen - Hi Lindsday. The impacts of kelp and other seaweeds on seawater pH and dissolved oxygen are greatest in the localized waters right around the seaweed, and then dissipate out with distance from the seaweed. This has been referred to as a "Halo effect". In the field experiment in our study, we found higher pH in the center of a four-line kelp array than at a location 50 meters away from those lines. Concurrently, we also found significantly higher growth in oysters placed in the center of the kelp lines than in oysters placed 50 meters away. The results indicate that not only can seaweeds provide crop diversification for shellfish farmers, but can also help improve shellfish crop production. The maximum distance at which seaweeds can impact water quality and shellfish growth are expected to be site dependent, and will depend on factors such as the amount of seaweed being grown, the depth of the water body, and current speeds.