Innovative Sustainable Solutions for Canadian Finfish Aquaculture Operations: AEG Solutions for an Eco-Friendly Aquaculture Future

Summary:
AEG Solutions consist of finfish feeding and containment systems that are designed for use in predominately medium- to high-energy open ocean environments. The AEG Feeder is designed to improve the feeding process by providing water-borne delivery of feed through delivery pipes well below the active ocean surface. The primary innovation in the AEG Containment System is that no mooring connections occur to the traditional cage surface collar. All cage-to-cage and cage-to-mooring connections occur below the surface through the enhanced AEG Weight Ring, reducing the total system loads in the open ocean.

This AIMAP project allowed the first ever complete integration of the advanced AEG Feeder and AEG Containment Systems while including fish on a commercial very high-energy grow-out site in St. Mary’s Bay, NS. Phase I resulted in the development and poof of concept of a submersible HDPE collar. Offering HDPE collar submersion capability globally will offer farm operators an ability to effectively avoid many damaging surface perils including typhoons/hurricanes, algal/jellyfish blooms and seasonal ice flows. Phase I also resulted in the successful integration of the portable AquaSonar fish sizing technology with the AEG Feeder, giving the ability to measure fish size on a more regular basis as well as a new AEG nursery net system that concentrates small smolt for better fish and feed management while increasing survival through a more protected environment in the energy experienced in the open ocean.

Smolt availability prevented full stocking of the site as originally planned but a lower number of smolt were entered to begin monitoring of fish welfare with the equipment. Fish and technology monitoring from Phase I will continue during Phase II as these technologies support our activities to raise fish on this established high-energy site. Phase II will report on the performance of the fish (growth, FCR, survival) raised with integrated AEG Solutions along with the capability of the equipment to cost effectively raise fish in a very high-energy environment. 

Project Lead: Aquaculture Engineering Group Inc (AEG)

Total Project Cost: $3,262,406
           
DFO-AIMAP Contribution: $668,420

Other Financial Support:

• Proponent: Aquaculture Engineering Group Inc (AEG)
• Nova-Scotia Department of Fisheries and Aquaculture (NSFDA)
• Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency, ACOA
• NRC-IRAP

For more information, please contact the regional coordinator:
Maritimes Region Coordinator, Cindy.Webster@dfo-mpo.gc.ca