Aquaponics
Aquaponics is an innovative food production system that combines aquaculture (the farming of aquatic animals) and hydroponics (growing plants without soil) in a sustainable manner. In this closed-loop system, waste produced by fish provides nutrients for plants, while the plants help filter and purify the water that is returned to the fish tanks. This symbiotic relationship creates an efficient cycle that minimizes the need for pesticides and fertilizers, reduces water usage, and lessens the environmental impact often associated with traditional agriculture.
Aquaponic systems can vary greatly in size, from small tabletop setups to large industrial greenhouses, allowing for food production in diverse environments, including urban areas where land may be limited. The construction of these systems often involves the use of recycled materials, which further supports sustainability and reduces costs. Organizations like Growing Power in Wisconsin exemplify the practical application of aquaponics, demonstrating its potential to produce significant amounts of food year-round, even in challenging climates. With the ability to grow food locally and efficiently, aquaponics presents a promising solution to address some of the challenges posed by global food production and environmental degradation.
On this Page
Subject Terms
Aquaponics
Definition: Combination of aquaculture and hydroponics that employs engineered aquatic ecosystems to grow edible plants and animals
Aquaponics is a method of food production that has few of the negative impacts on the environment seen with traditional agriculture. Aquaponics can efficiently produce food for local consumption without the use of pesticides or fertilizers, without degrading soils, and without altering land use on a major scale.
The production of food to meet the needs of the world’s rapidly growing population has many effects on the environment. More than 35 percent of ice-free land is used to grow food for human consumption, and agricultural practices account for over 70 percent of water use, 30 percent of global warming potential, 85 percent of the six million tons of pesticides used annually, and nearly all of the 170 million tons of nitrogen, 50 million tons of phosphate, and 50 million tons of potash used annually. It has been estimated that in the United States, food travels about 3,219 kilometers (2,000 miles) before it reaches the consumer’s plate, and about half of the food produced gets discarded before it can be consumed. High-production agricultural practices contribute to habitat loss and degradation, water pollution, salinization of soils, and the overdrawing of groundwater. Aquaponics, in contrast, is a technology that can efficiently produce food for local consumption without the use of pesticides or fertilizers, without degrading soils, and without altering land use on a major scale.
Aquaponics combines the time-tested practices of aquatic animal farming (aquaculture) and the growing of plants without soil (hydroponics) in ways that recirculate water and capitalize on the beneficial ecosystem services of both practices. In aquaponic systems, water from the aquaculture subsystem, which contains waste from the animals, is pumped into the hydroponics subsystem, where the nutrient-rich water fertilizes edible vegetation and the vegetation purifies the water, which then flows back to the aquaponics subsystem.
All aquaponic systems include basic components such as tanks, pumps, and vegetable beds, but the design configurations of these components are limited only by the creativity of their makers. Some aquaponic systems are as much art as they are food-generating systems. The materials used to construct aquaponic systems are often salvaged from discarded materials; this tendency to employ recycling further reduces the environmental and economic impacts of aquaponics. For example, aquaponic systems are often built from inexpensive repurposed barrels, tubs, pools, pumps, and plumbing. Whether new or recycled items are used to make aquaponic systems, those operating the systems must take care to ensure that toxins and other harmful substances are not allowed to leach into the systems.
Because aquaponics uses little water and space, it can be a source of food production practically anywhere in the world, even in places where traditional farming is impractical. Aquaponic systems range in size from tabletop 37.8-liter (10-gallon) fish tanks with small beds of vegetables to large industrial greenhouses with tanks holding more than 37.8 kiloliters (10,000 gallons) of water and floating racks of lettuce.
Aquaponics is a central component in the operation of Growing Power, a nonprofit organization headquartered in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, that is dedicated to growing fresh, healthy food with community involvement. Growing Power, which was founded in 1993 by former professional basketball player Will Allen, has farms in Milwaukee and Madison, Wisconsin, as well as Chicago, Illinois. It uses a variety of sustainable agricultural practices, including aquaponics, to grow food year-round in greenhouses. In a 1.2-hectare (3-acre) greenhouse, Growing Power uses aquaponics to raise approximately one million pounds of produce and ten thousand fish every year. Growing Power has demonstrated that food can be grown year-round even in an environment as cold as Milwaukee.
Bibliography
"Aquaponics." United States Department of Agriculture, n.d. Retrieved from https://www.nal.usda.gov/afsic/aquaponics.
Bridgewood, Les. Hydroponics: Soilless Gardening Explained. Marlborough, Wiltshire, England: Crowood Press, 2003.
Dembkowski, Daniel J., Landon L. Pierce, and Craig P. Paukert. "In Response: The Use of Aquaponics in the Classroom." Fisheries 39.11 (2014): 530. Print.
Hart, Emily R., James B. Webb, and Andy J. Danylchuk. "Implementation of Aquaponics in Education: An Assessment of Challenges and Solutions." Science Education International 24.4 (2013): 460–80. Print.
Nelson, Rebecca L. “Ten Aquaponic Systems Around the World.” Aquaponics Journal, no. 46 (2007).
Roberto, Keith. How-to Hydroponics. 4th ed. Farmingdale, N.Y.: Futuregarden Press, 2005.
Simpson, Randy. Aquaponics Gardening for Beginners: Step-by-Step Guide to Getting Started on Raising Fish and Growing Vegetables in an Aquaponic Garden. North Charleston: CreateSpace, 2014. Print.
Stickney, Robert R. Aquaculture: An Introductory Text. 2d ed. Cambridge, Mass.: CABI, 2009.