Risks and Opportunities for Sustainable Aquaculture (ROSA)
Lead Research Organisation:
Plymouth Marine Laboratory
Department Name: Plymouth Marine Lab
Abstract
The aquaculture of suspension-feeding bivalve shellfish (i.e. mussels, oysters, cockles, clams, scallops) is among the fastest-growing of all food-producing sectors, making a direct contribution of more than £500 million to the UK economy , with much greater multiplier effects, all projected to grow significantly in the coming decade. Despite these contributions, we lack a clear national roadmap that describes how to optimise the growth and integration of this sector with diverse activities now taking place in the coastal zone.
Aquaculture may have both positive and negative impacts on the marine environment. In particular any overexploitation of an area may have severe effects on commercial productivity and ecosystem health. Consequently UK aquaculture operations are required to conform to strict controls including an environmental impact assessment. The goal of ROSA is to develop management strategies which will allow sustainable development, balancing the potential benefits (e.g. improved water quality, mitigation of biodiversity loss, economic activity) with the risks (e.g. loss of habitat due to both siting of farms and seed collection). Such knowledge is vital for successful promotion, societal acceptance and development of the industry.
A key factor for successful aquaculture is the suitability of farmed species. This depends upon a number of factors including growth rate, cost of production, market price, site location and resistance to disease. Assessing these issues is complicated, because shellfish are highly responsive to fluctuations in temperature, salinity, food availability and food composition, as frequently occur in near-shore environments where most aquaculture takes place. These responses not only affect shellfish population growth, but also the capacity of each host ecosystem within which aquaculture is situated.
As environmental dynamics alter, for example due to climate change, the risks and opportunities for aquaculture are almost certain to change. As a result, the species farmed and associated culture practice may also have to change. Consequently, we must consider the potential risks and benefits of environmental change; addressing direct impacts such as increasing temperature, storminess, exposure to wind and waves, plus frequency of harmful algal bloom events. It is also important to identify locations and culture practices that minimise impacts at local and regional scales. Only by modelling how suspension-feeding shellfish interact with ecosystem processes, can environmental impacts of and capacities for culture be realistically assessed. We propose to enable such modelling within a bespoke and portable desktop-based model tool on behalf of the UK aquaculture sector. This will draw upon the best available science and tools, realising the potential of this integrated approach to resolve temporal and spatial variations within a GIS decision support platform tailored according to user requirements. For the first time, at scales ranging from individual farms to regional waters, this will enable the projection of likely risks resulting from interrelations between habitat suitability and culture practise. To ensure immediate applied relevance, the tool will be developed in direct consultation with the aquaculture industry and its regulators.
Aquaculture may have both positive and negative impacts on the marine environment. In particular any overexploitation of an area may have severe effects on commercial productivity and ecosystem health. Consequently UK aquaculture operations are required to conform to strict controls including an environmental impact assessment. The goal of ROSA is to develop management strategies which will allow sustainable development, balancing the potential benefits (e.g. improved water quality, mitigation of biodiversity loss, economic activity) with the risks (e.g. loss of habitat due to both siting of farms and seed collection). Such knowledge is vital for successful promotion, societal acceptance and development of the industry.
A key factor for successful aquaculture is the suitability of farmed species. This depends upon a number of factors including growth rate, cost of production, market price, site location and resistance to disease. Assessing these issues is complicated, because shellfish are highly responsive to fluctuations in temperature, salinity, food availability and food composition, as frequently occur in near-shore environments where most aquaculture takes place. These responses not only affect shellfish population growth, but also the capacity of each host ecosystem within which aquaculture is situated.
As environmental dynamics alter, for example due to climate change, the risks and opportunities for aquaculture are almost certain to change. As a result, the species farmed and associated culture practice may also have to change. Consequently, we must consider the potential risks and benefits of environmental change; addressing direct impacts such as increasing temperature, storminess, exposure to wind and waves, plus frequency of harmful algal bloom events. It is also important to identify locations and culture practices that minimise impacts at local and regional scales. Only by modelling how suspension-feeding shellfish interact with ecosystem processes, can environmental impacts of and capacities for culture be realistically assessed. We propose to enable such modelling within a bespoke and portable desktop-based model tool on behalf of the UK aquaculture sector. This will draw upon the best available science and tools, realising the potential of this integrated approach to resolve temporal and spatial variations within a GIS decision support platform tailored according to user requirements. For the first time, at scales ranging from individual farms to regional waters, this will enable the projection of likely risks resulting from interrelations between habitat suitability and culture practise. To ensure immediate applied relevance, the tool will be developed in direct consultation with the aquaculture industry and its regulators.
Technical Summary
The goal of ROSA is to realise, in a single stakeholder-friendly tool, the capability for dynamic analyses, in space and time, of the risks and opportunities for sustainable aquaculture, at varying scales from farm to regional. Proven, mature and well-tested numerical models: the Finite-Volume Coastal Ocean Model (FVCOM), the European Regional Seas Ecosystem Model (ERSEM) and ShellSIM will be coupled into an Integrated Marine System & Aquaculture Model. Simulations of the present day conditions will be made to demonstrate the ability of the model system to reproduce the observed mean state and variability (on seasonal timescales) of key environmental variables, including the ability to simulate observed production for present day UK shellfish aquaculture. Case study simulations will be undertaken to explore the impacts of climate change and hydrodynamic connectivity on both the aquaculture industry and the environment within which it operates. The existing ShellGIS system will be adapted for the UK industry, tailoring user interfaces to address relevant UK questions and scenarios to be agreed collaboratively with stakeholders. The resulting desktop tool will undergo testing by expert and non-expert users, and their recommendations implemented as appropriate and feasible. We will produce maps of present and future states. These will include maps of shellfish carrying capacities, with time to market and profitability, according to chosen culture practise scenarios. We will synthesise the results for peer review publication and stakeholder reports. Finally, in collaboration with stakeholders, we will develop a roadmap for the further development of decision support tools for sustainable aquaculture in the UK.
Planned Impact
Aquaculture is a growing sector which has the potential to match the shortfall between supply and demand for marine protein whilst reducing pressure on wild fisheries. This project has the potential to provide significant and extensive impacts and benefits targeting a wide range of stakeholders including farmers, decision makers, industry regulators and the wider public.
Aquaculture industry, licencing and management: Knowledge gained will allow a more holistic view of UK shellfish aquaculture at both local and regional scales, both in the present and in future, assessing best practise, profitability and ecological carrying capacity for shellfish culture, together with implications for water quality and Good Environmental Status (GES). This will include insight into the regional scale connectivity between aquaculture systems, with implications for pathogen transfer. Combining this information in a tailored desktop GIS system will allow growers, policymakers, environmental regulators, environmental managers and wider society to better assess the risks and opportunities for a sustainable industry.
Developing and implementing policy: ROSA will deliver a model based whole ecosystem synthesis, towards improving marine management through the refinement of the Marine Strategy Framework Directive's (MSFD) Good Environmental Status (GES) descriptors and targets. ROSA will also provide relevant information for fisheries, aquaculture, energy provision, marine planning, licensing and conservation aspects under initiatives such as the Marine and Coastal Access Act, Marine (Scotland) Act, Common Fisheries Policy and the OSPAR Joint Assessment and Monitoring Programme.
Wider society: ShellGIS and its associated approach will facilitate the development of sustainable aquaculture; with positive effects on social, financial, human and physical capitals, generating the food, industrial products and employment that help to maintain community structure in wider society.
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Aquaculture industry, licencing and management: Knowledge gained will allow a more holistic view of UK shellfish aquaculture at both local and regional scales, both in the present and in future, assessing best practise, profitability and ecological carrying capacity for shellfish culture, together with implications for water quality and Good Environmental Status (GES). This will include insight into the regional scale connectivity between aquaculture systems, with implications for pathogen transfer. Combining this information in a tailored desktop GIS system will allow growers, policymakers, environmental regulators, environmental managers and wider society to better assess the risks and opportunities for a sustainable industry.
Developing and implementing policy: ROSA will deliver a model based whole ecosystem synthesis, towards improving marine management through the refinement of the Marine Strategy Framework Directive's (MSFD) Good Environmental Status (GES) descriptors and targets. ROSA will also provide relevant information for fisheries, aquaculture, energy provision, marine planning, licensing and conservation aspects under initiatives such as the Marine and Coastal Access Act, Marine (Scotland) Act, Common Fisheries Policy and the OSPAR Joint Assessment and Monitoring Programme.
Wider society: ShellGIS and its associated approach will facilitate the development of sustainable aquaculture; with positive effects on social, financial, human and physical capitals, generating the food, industrial products and employment that help to maintain community structure in wider society.
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Publications
Description | The first large scales simulations have been completed using FVCOM_ ERSEM . Shellsim model recoded in FORTRAN and coupled to ERSEM-FVCOM. Assessments made of carrying capacity for shellfish in the western English channel / Lyme bay. Outputs of the model system used to drive the SHELLGIS model tool. |
Exploitation Route | outputs will be used to drive shellfish aquaculture models by users. |
Sectors | Agriculture Food and Drink Environment |
Description | Course on Shellsim for researchers at the International Marine Research (Oristano - Italy) |
Geographic Reach | Europe |
Policy Influence Type | Influenced training of practitioners or researchers |
Description | Article 37: Support for the design and implementation of conservation measurement and regional cooperation |
Amount | £250,000 (GBP) |
Organisation | Department For Environment, Food And Rural Affairs (DEFRA) |
Department | Marine Management Organisation (MMO) |
Sector | Public |
Country | United Kingdom |
Start | 01/2018 |
End | 03/2019 |
Description | EU H2020 SFS-11b-2015 - Consolidating the environmental sustainability of European aquaculture |
Amount | € 6,918,512 (EUR) |
Funding ID | Project ID: 678396 |
Organisation | European Union |
Sector | Public |
Country | European Union (EU) |
Start | 03/2016 |
End | 02/2020 |
Description | IMMERSE: Improving Models for Marine EnviRonment SErvices |
Amount | € 4,998,000 (EUR) |
Funding ID | 821926 |
Organisation | European Commission H2020 |
Sector | Public |
Country | Belgium |
Start | 12/2018 |
End | 12/2022 |
Description | MyCoast: Coordinated Atlantic Coastal Operational Oceanographic Observatory |
Amount | € 3,000,000 (EUR) |
Funding ID | EAPA_285/2016 |
Organisation | European Commission |
Sector | Public |
Country | European Union (EU) |
Start | 11/2017 |
End | 07/2020 |
Description | OstrInnova - Valorizzazione della produzione sostenibile delle ostriche nel sistema produttivo della molluschicoltura in Sardegna |
Amount | € 10,000 (EUR) |
Organisation | International Marine Centre |
Sector | Charity/Non Profit |
Country | Italy |
Start | 03/2017 |
End | 03/2018 |
Description | PRIMROSE: Predicting Risk and Impact of Harmful Events on the Aquaculture Sector |
Amount | € 2,000,000 (EUR) |
Organisation | INTERREG IIIC North |
Sector | Public |
Country | France |
Start | 11/2017 |
End | 12/2021 |
Title | 5 years of model simulations with FVCOM-ERSEM-Shellsim (2005-2009) |
Description | 5 years of daily averaged model output from FVCOM-ERSEM-Shellsim coupled model for the Lymebay region (UK). The model includes hydrodynamics (FVCOM), biogeochemistry (ERSEM), suspended sediment dynamics (CSTM) and mussel aquaculture production (ShellSIM). The model variables include all relevant variables to evaluate the potential impacts on the biogeochemistry of the region to different levels of mussel aquaculture productions. |
Type Of Material | Database/Collection of data |
Year Produced | 2018 |
Provided To Others? | Yes |
Impact | The approach reported here is most suited to new farms during the licensing application period and the development of the business plan. The level of detail in the model results can provide a comprehensive evaluation of the potential impacts over a wide range of ecosystem characteristics. The approach can be customised to look at site specific characteristics (presence of deposition sensitive reef species such as pink sea fans (Eunicella verrucosa)) and can be further coupled to higher trophic level model systems such as Ecopath with Ecosim (EwE) to explore wider interactions with the regional ecosystem (i.e artisanal fisheries). The model can be run for long periods (i.e. multiple growth cycles) to evaluate cumulative impacts (long-term community shifts driven by benthic-pelagic coupling or selective feeding on microzooplankton) as well as evaluating recovery pathways. The model system can be used to explore different production scenarios to feed into the company business plan as well as into the licensing procedure. These scenarios can include changes to the farm spatial configuration (i.e. orientation, rope density) to minimise long-term impacts and increase production, but also implement management approaches (i.e. staggered production) that could help maximise both production and economic profit (e.g. sustained production over longer periods to avoid market saturation and drop in prizes) |
Title | FVCOM model outputs for microplastics |
Description | FVCOM hydrodynamic model output. Used to guide fieldwork sampling campaigns for effective use of expensive fieldwork resources. |
Type Of Material | Database/Collection of data |
Provided To Others? | No |
Impact | The fieldwork is ongoing. |
Title | FVCOM model outputs for the UK shelf |
Description | FVCOM hydrodynamic model output supplied to MERP research programme. |
Type Of Material | Database/Collection of data |
Year Produced | 2013 |
Provided To Others? | Yes |
Impact | Paper published using this data. Fieldwork campaigns informed by the outcomes of the model outputs. |
Title | FVCOM-ERSEM implementation in Lyme Bay |
Description | Implementation of FVCOM-ERSEM coupled hydrodynamic-biogeochemical model in the Lyme Bay coastal area (South West UK) at a nominal resolution of 400m. The model is nested within our implementation of the same model in the Western UK shelf. The model has already been run for two years. |
Type Of Material | Computer model/algorithm |
Year Produced | 2018 |
Provided To Others? | Yes |
Impact | This model implementation in the Lyme Bay has enabled the simulation of the growth of mussel farms located in the area by feed the model results to PML's ShellSIM model that resolves the evolution of cultured rope mussels. The model implementation is also suitable for evaluating the fate and distribution of freshwater borne pathogens such as E. coli and its potential impact on aquaculture sites. |
Title | FVCOM-ERSEM implementation in the Conwy estuary and surrounding coastal areas |
Description | We have implemented a realistic setup of the hydrodynamic model FVCOM and the biogeochemical model ERSEM in the North Wales area including both Anglesey coastal areas and the Conwy estuary. The model is nested within our Western UK shelf FVCOM-ERSEM model. We have simulated 2005. The results constitute a preliminary version which we will update during 2018. |
Type Of Material | Computer model/algorithm |
Year Produced | 2018 |
Provided To Others? | Yes |
Impact | This is the first time the biogeochemistry of the Conwy has been simulated at the resolution of this model. The main purpose of the model is to evaluate the main processes involved in the processing of terrestrial organic matter which will happen during 2018. The setup is suitable for the study of marine renewable energy impacts on marine biogeochemistry. It could similarly be used to evaluate the potential growth of the mussel farms located near the Menai Straight. |
Title | FVCOM-FABM-ERSEM output for the UK |
Description | FVCOM-FABM-ERSEM model run for the period 2005 to 2015. |
Type Of Material | Database/Collection of data |
Year Produced | 2018 |
Provided To Others? | No |
Impact | This model simulation represents both the longest continuous FVCOM simulation as well as the first with a stable FVCOM-FABM-ERSEM configuration at this scale. |
Title | GHG prodcution from Shellfish |
Description | The ShellSIM model has been updated to estimate production of methane and nitrous oxide from Shellfish |
Type Of Material | Computer model/algorithm |
Year Produced | 2018 |
Provided To Others? | No |
Impact | this model will allow the assessment of the GHG production from aquaculture farms |
Title | Harmonic analysis dataset of the NEMO CMEMS data |
Description | A harmonic analysis of the sea surface elevation and currents for the CMEMS NEMO output of the North West European continental shelf. |
Type Of Material | Database/Collection of data |
Year Produced | 2018 |
Provided To Others? | Yes |
Impact | The data have been used to generate residual currents which have been used to drive FVCOM models of regions within the CMEMS North West European continental shelf domain. |
Title | High Resolution FVCOM model implementation in the SW UK coast for coastal research |
Description | Implementation of FVCOM-FABM-ERSEM in the SW coast of the UK from Par Sands to Portland. The model includes the major estuaries in the region (e.g. Tamar, Teign, Exe) with a nominal resolution of 40m in the horizontal. |
Type Of Material | Computer model/algorithm |
Provided To Others? | No |
Impact | This model will be used to address a wide range of topics, from the transport and accumulation of microplastics to the suitability of aquaculture activities in Lyme Bay. While the model domain has been finalised we are still in the process of generating multi-year simulations and validating the model results. |
Title | ShellSIM-Fortran |
Description | the ShellSIM model for simulation of shellfish growth and aquaculture activity has been recoded in Fortran under the Framework for Aquatic Biogeochemical Models |
Type Of Material | Computer model/algorithm |
Provided To Others? | No |
Impact | this new version of the model allow for a seamless coupling with biogeochemical models like ERSEM |
Description | Bangor University |
Organisation | Bangor University |
Country | United Kingdom |
Sector | Academic/University |
PI Contribution | Model results generated by me have been analysed by James Waggit at Bangor to help interpret the behaviour of seabirds. |
Collaborator Contribution | Paper manuscripts. |
Impact | Two peer-reviewed papers so far with a third in the works. Multiple conference presentations. |
Start Year | 2013 |
Description | HABs and aquaculture |
Organisation | University of Exeter |
Country | United Kingdom |
Sector | Academic/University |
PI Contribution | I contributed to write a successful grant to the European Maritime and Fishery Fund and prepare material for stakeholder meetings. |
Collaborator Contribution | Dr. Brown lead the successful proposal writing and the stakeholder meetings. Prof.Tyler, Dr. Shutler and Dr. Lowe also contributed. |
Impact | A project proposal has been successfully submitted to the European Maritime and Fishery Fund. The collaboration is multidisciplinary, involving ecosystem modelling, remote sensing, plankton genetic and physiology |
Start Year | 2017 |
Description | Ostrinnova |
Organisation | University of Stirling |
Country | United Kingdom |
Sector | Academic/University |
PI Contribution | Provided link to the International Maritime Centre - Italy - to use ROSA model tools to assess shellfish aquaculture activity in Sardinia. |
Collaborator Contribution | Provision of data |
Impact | further development of the SHELLSIM model |
Start Year | 2016 |
Description | SAMS |
Organisation | Scottish Association For Marine Science |
Country | United Kingdom |
Sector | Academic/University |
PI Contribution | Collaboration between us and SAMS for configuration of our common modelling tools. In particular, this has been for the configuration of the atmospheric model we use. |
Collaborator Contribution | Help setting up and troubleshooting model configurations and data sources. |
Impact | We have generated a decade of atmospheric model outputs which we use for a range of modelling applications. These results have also been included in a peer-reviewed publication. |
Start Year | 2012 |
Title | FVCOM Python Toolbox |
Description | Python tools for interrogating FVCOM model data. |
Type Of Technology | Software |
Year Produced | 2019 |
Open Source License? | Yes |
Impact | Significantly speeds up post-processing model outputs. Also increasing use in parallel processing of outputs and inputs for FVCOM. |
URL | https://gitlab.ecosystem-modelling.pml.ac.uk/fvcom/pyfvcom |
Title | FVCOM toolbox |
Description | Provide pre- and post-processing tools for the FVCOM hydrodynamic model. |
Type Of Technology | Software |
Year Produced | 2019 |
Open Source License? | Yes |
Impact | The toolbox has been included in the official release of FVCOM. |
URL | https://gitlab.ecosystem-modelling.pml.ac.uk/fvcom/fvcom-toolbox |
Description | 8th UK FVCOM Workshop |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | I gave a talk at the 8th UK FVCOM Workshop entitled "PML's approach to FVCOM modelling, set up and validation". Publicising PML's work with FVCOM has meant that, for example, our recent job advert has received interest from people present at the workshop. In addition, I was asked to present PML's modelling work to Marine Scotland Science with a view to exploring potential future colloborations. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2017 |
Description | AMEMR conference |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | Presented work on the riverine impacts on offshore aquaculture (poster and presentation) at this year's AMEMR conference. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2017 |
URL | https://www.amemr.com/ |
Description | Attended the Offshore Renewable Energy Supergen Hub meeting in London to represent PML's science |
Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | National |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | Attended the Offshore Renewable Energy Supergen Hub meeting in London to represent PML's science |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2017 |
Description | Conference 2015 - Association of Scottish Shellfish Growers |
Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | Regional |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | participation in the annual conference of the Scottish shellfish growers association. Trade stand highlighting the aquaculture research being undertaken by PML provided and opportunity to communicate with the industry and seek industry collaborators. contacts are being followed up. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2015 |
Description | Contributed to the modelling group's presentation to the ISO9001 assessor |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | Local |
Primary Audience | Other audiences |
Results and Impact | Contributed to the modelling group's presentation to the ISO9001 assessor |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2018 |
Description | Dinoflagellate workshop |
Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | Local |
Primary Audience | Other audiences |
Results and Impact | this meeting was organised by Nigel Mortimer , Estuaries officer of the South Devon AONB, to discuss the opportunity to catalyse research on the regularly occurring bloom of Dinoflagellates in Salcombe Estuary. The participants were from very different organisations, from research (e.g. MBA, CEFAS), to government agencies (e.g. EA, Natural England) to NGO (e.g. West Country rivers trust). The discussion was lively and contacts for further work were taken |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2017 |
Description | FVCOM workshop in Edinburgh |
Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | I gave a talk at the 8th UK FVCOM Workshop entitled "Biogeochemical modelling with FVCOM". The talk exemplified the contributions PML is making to the community model FVCOM and how the additional functionality can help tackle a much wider range of topics than what was previously possible with FVCOM. The talk has instigated the gradual uptake of our biogeochemical model ERSEM by groups in the US. The additions will be part of future regular releases of FVCOM by the UMASSD development team led by Dr. C. Chen at The Marine Ecosystem Dynamics Modelling Laboratory (MEDML) at the School for Marine Science and Technology, University of Massachusetts-Dartmouth. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2017 |
URL | http://fvcom.smast.umassd.edu/ |
Description | MMO evidence gathering meeting |
Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | Regional |
Primary Audience | Policymakers/politicians |
Results and Impact | Participation in a phone conference organised by the MMO with other SW stakeholders under the Marine Planning Summer Engagement workshops on Ports and Coastal development. We reviewed the work done by the MMO so far in terms of identifying and evaluating Issues, Causes and Effects. This was a contribution to their process in setting up the Marine Planning draft for the South West. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2017 |
Description | Marine Scotland Science's Scottish Shelf Model workshop |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | I was an invited speak for Marine Scotland Science's Scottish Shelf Model workshop in Edinburgh, where I presented PML's modelling tools and their use, particularly FVCOM-ERSEM and FVCOM-ERSEM-ShellSIM. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2017 |
URL | http://marine.gov.scot/data/scottish-shelf-model-workshop-june-2017 |
Description | Meeting with aquaculture stakeholder on impact of land-based pollution on shellfish farms |
Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | Regional |
Primary Audience | Industry/Business |
Results and Impact | the meeting involved about a dozen of represetnative of the South West UK aquaculture industry, a dozen of regulators (e.g. FSA, Natural England) and South West Water. the impacts of land-based activities on coastal aquaculture farm have been discussed. Industry representatives were very actively involved and passionate and provided very useful insights on their needs and therefore to diret further research |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019 |
Description | Meeting with the MMO |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | Regional |
Primary Audience | Policymakers/politicians |
Results and Impact | A meeting was held with the MMO to discuss the potential for using FVCOM-FABM-ERSEM model outputs in the Tamar estuary and south west more generally. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2018 |
Description | Participation of public engagement workshop in Totnes |
Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | Local |
Primary Audience | Policymakers/politicians |
Results and Impact | I participated and presented results from my research on coastal biogeochemical modelling in the event titled Kingsbridge Creeks dinoflagellate blooms - the cause, the impact and management?. We discussed the available resources in the region that could contribute knowledge to the causes of recurrent harmful algal blooms recorded in the Kingsbridge creeks in Totnes. I presented results from PML's high resolution modelling of the region. Overall, the audience reflected that there were suitable skills that could arrive at the causes of the recurrent blooms. Other attendees have initiated a collaboration with the local authorities to collect further background data and we decided that in the light of these initial investigations there would be a follow up meeting to explore further actions. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2017 |
Description | Poster presentation at Aquaculture conference |
Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Industry/Business |
Results and Impact | Presentation of PML approach to evaluating aquaculture potential for growth and its consequences at an international conference on Aquaculture. There was varied interest in the modelling that we undertake which is not common in the industry Cazenave, P; Allen, JI; Blackford, JC; Artioli, Y; Torres, R; Hawkins, AJS; Morris, K. 2015 Risks and Opportunities for Sustainable Aquaculture. [Poster] In: Aquaculture 2015, Montpellier, France, 24th-26th August 2015. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2015 |
URL | http://plymsea.ac.uk/6849/ |
Description | Presented PML's work on modelling of carbon in UK waters to Marine Scotland Science. |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | National |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | I gave an overview of PML's work on modelling of carbon in UK waters to Marine Scotland Science. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2017 |
Description | Presented PML's work on modelling of carbon in UK waters to the Marine Management Organisation. |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | Regional |
Primary Audience | Policymakers/politicians |
Results and Impact | Presented PML's work on modelling of carbon in UK waters to the Marine Management Organisation. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2017 |
Description | Research workshop with East China Normal University, Shanghai |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A formal working group, expert panel or dialogue |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | During October 24-26, 2016, the Workshop on Modelling coastal ecosystems in China was held in SKLEC-NIVA Centre for Marine and Coastal Research, State Key Laboratory of Estuarine and Coastal Research (SKLEC), East China Normal University, Shanghai. Modeling Scientists from Plymouth Marine Laboratory (PML), Middle East Technical University (METU), Technical University of Denmark (DTU), along with Norwegian Institute for Water Research (NIVA) have participated in the workshop. Discussions focused on Modeling Coastal and Shelf Ecosystems, with three main challenges: 1) Downscaling to local scale and back again, 2) Delivering relevant knowledge for end-users and 3) An integrated international effort towards delivering relevant new knowledge for studies on socio-ecological systems. Free discussions among different themes were also very hot before the end of the workshop. The workshop organisation concluded that future cooperation in projects, research, and papers were needed, and proposed to form an international modeling task team in the future. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2016 |
Description | Ulocking aquaculture Innovation |
Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | National |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | I participated to the Unlocking aquaculture innovation through Collaboration events organised by BBSRC and NERC where I had the opportunity to discuss about our work with other scientists and industrial representative |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2016 |
Description | Visit to Cambodia |
Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | National |
Primary Audience | Policymakers/politicians |
Results and Impact | During a visit to Cambodia for the ACCORD project, we met with a wide range of people, from government officials keen to utilise the opportunity afforded them by the project to develop a monitoring capability in Cambodia. Their intention is to train and set up a regular marine sampling programme to monitor water quality. We discussed potential approaches within the context of their funding. We also met with an NGO (Marine Conservation Cambodia) with a strong involvement in the protection of the newly create Marine Protected Areas. During the meeting, a preliminary plan was developed for a fieldwork campaign. Modelling and remote sensing data were also demonstrated for subsequent use and planning. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2018 |