Aquaculture is the farming in fresh and saltwater environments of aquatic animals or plants principally for food. Fish, mollusks, crustaceans, and kelp are a few examples. Shellfish aquaculture is thriving in New England, but future growth in the industry could be stunted as coastal waters in the region become more acidic.

Understanding the Context

Researchers at WHOI have developed a way to link nutrient load reductions to improvements in the health of Buzzards Bay, Massachusetts, which may an important step toward cleaner and less acidic harbors in the Baystate. Ocean acidification gets a watchful eye in New England aquaculture ‘hot ... Aquaculture Aquaculture Scale your sustainable production with our automation, breeding innovations, and monitoring expertise that reduce costs while protecting ocean health. Current farming and fishing practices are having devastating impacts on our climate and environment.

Key Insights

Scott Lindell, research specialist at The Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, reveals how marine aquaculture can sustainably feed the world’s growing population. Learn more about aquaculture here. A diver harvests kelp at an offshore aquaculture farm. WHOI researchers are developing techniques to expand kelp cultivation, which has the potential to provide low-impact nutrition, renewable energy, and carbon storage. Recent efforts have relied on aquaculture—growing seagrass seedlings in a controlled environment, then transplanting them into struggling meadows.

Final Thoughts

These seedlings seem to survive transplantation better than those taken from established meadows, but anchoring them in place is an issue until they get established. Aquaculture breeding and selection is a recent phenomenon compared to extant agricultural practice of hundreds or thousands of years. A long-term research interest of mine has been the selection of naturally superior strains for aquaculture, and I will continue that with a recent ARPA-E award I lead.