A guide for co-locating marine energy and aquaculture

Abstract

In recent years, there has been increasing interest in using marine energy for non-grid uses, such as powering at-sea uses in areas where adequate marine energy resources exist. One of these uses is aquaculture, which is a growing sector. As marine energy and aquaculture progress, there is an opportunity to bring these industries together for further advancement. Aquaculture provides a new market for marine energy, especially one that is viable for smaller-scale technologies. Marine energy provides a source of renewable energy that is created on site, helping move the aquaculture industry toward more sustainable practices and away from diesel-based energy for at-sea activities (e.g., feeding, monitoring, maintenance). Co-locating and powering aquaculture with marine energy within the same space and time scales can lead to increased markets for marine energy and sustainable development. Because aquaculture is still a new application of marine energy, there are many unknowns and potential barriers that need to be overcome to make co-location a reality. We have developed a Guide for Co-location of Marine Energy and Aquaculture to provide guidance for considering a co-located project and to begin to answer some of these questions and remaining challenges.

Co-locating aquaculture and marine energy is novel, and its feasibility needs to be understood. Several research or pilot projects worldwide have shown the viability of co-location, but this has yet to be tested in longer-term projects. Knowledge gaps remain to further the understanding of the feasibility for co-location. For example, both marine energy and offshore aquaculture have been slow to develop and have faced regulatory challenges, requiring an understanding of the permitting regimes that must be navigated to achieve approvals for co-located deployments. Technical feasibility, such as how to engineer and integrate a co-located system, must be explored, both through desk-based research like spatial analyses to identify areas viable for co-location as well as through demonstration projects to test concepts and work towards full-scale developments. Energy needs of aquaculture operations also need to be better understood to identify what types of marine energy technologies are best suited for different aquaculture systems. Importantly, social aspects (e.g., community context and local perspectives) must be accounted for to comprehensively understand the viability of future co-location. Stakeholder perspectives need to be understood to discern potential social and economic effects as well as social license to operate.

This Guide for Co-location of Marine Energy and Aquaculture is intended for aquaculture operators and marine energy technology developers, particularly those interested in partnering to co-locate aquaculture and marine energy developments. The guide details considerations for co-location including: 1) Defining a potential project and identifying key attributes, 2) finding suitable areas; 3) detailing integration, 4) navigating regulatory regimes (with a focus on the US), and 5) stakeholder perspectives. The guide also offers case studies and lessons learned from past projects or community engagement efforts. This guide aims to offer insight based on several years of research to explore feasibility of co-location and will continue to be updated as new information and learning come to light.