Interested in Aquaculture ?

At the present time they are accepting requests for options to lease for marine trout and marine plants, and suspended culture shellfish, like oysters and mussels.

An option to lease, which has no charge to apply, will take about 2 months for a reply. If you are accepted, you go to the next step.

The next step is “ Option”: and it costs $500. It can take 6 months. You need more details and a public meeting.

Next step is the application: takes 1 month. (Application Form; Development Plan; Scoping Report)  Here they will accept or decline your application.

The next step is the review: it takes about 7 months. They review all and have a public hearing

The last step is the decision: takes 2 months.

Total : 18 months

FUNDING?? The Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency  has funding for aquaculture. They can assist in all phases of the operation (set-up, growth, harvesting, processing) as long as the business case is there. However, given the length of time it takes to get all the necessary permits in place, the do not consider providing assistance to an aquaculture project until all necessary permits are secured.  Assistance is in the form of a fully repayable, unsecured, interest free loan for up to 50% of project costs. Their maximum contribution is $500,000.

The fisheries and aquaculture loan board also provides funding. They defer payments for 3 years, as it will take three years for your product to grow from seed to market size.

Great news

The Municipality has deployed 7 temperature recording devices into our waters.
Its the first step of our "mapping the waters" for business !
They are between the Widgegum Islands, East of Tucker Island, North of Pease Island, near Camp Cove, near Canoe island, near Ram Island and North of the Brother Islands.

2012 versus 2030

Reallocated sites

New legislation allows the Province to maintain a registry of terminated aquaculture sites for potential reallocation to another operator. 
Before a site is entered into the registry, the site must first undergo a performance review as described in the Aquaculture Licence and Lease Regulations.
If the site passes the review, the site will be entered into the Registry and offered to other operators through a competitive Call for Proposals. Proposals will be judged according to established criteria. A successful proponent will have the exclusive right to apply for the site.
The site can only be used for the purpose for which it was originally approved.

What are we farming in Nova Scotia?

American Oysters
Mussels
Bay Quahogs
Atlantic Salmon
Arctic Char
Atlantic Halibut
Bay Scallops
Clams
Marine Plants
Rainbow Trout
Striped Bass
American Eel
Sea Scallops
Brook Trout

Where are we Canadians farming ?

Aquaculture occurs in every Canadian province, including the Yukon !

We're Open for Business !

Public Information on sites

Information on sites renewed, new applications, amended sites and application refusals,
Also information on how to publicly comment on a site application.

Click here to read.

Map of Aquaculture sites in Nova Scotia

Here's a Link to Nova Scotia's map of aquaculture sites and their owners.

CLICK HERE

NS Aquaculture

Sales were 64 million in 2015, 800 direct industry jobs, and 155 indirect industry jobs..

At present, there are 44 companies actively farming fish in Nova Scotia in more than 270 sites.

Interesting quote

“Aquaculture, not the Internet, represents the most promising investment opportunity of the 21st Century.”

— Peter Drucker, Management Expert & Economist

Mussels

Mirror, mirror, on the wall... who is the most colorful of them all ?

If you’ve ever ate mussels before, you may have noticed that some are a creamy light orange, while and others are a more vibrant dark orange.
The color difference is how you can tell a female mussel from male mussels.
The ladies are more colorful; as if they wore make up !

Salmon and Mussels... Perfect harmony

Mussels and kelp growing adjacent to Atlantic salmon cages in the Bay of Fundy have been monitored since 2001 for contamination by medicines, heavy metals, arsenic, PCBs and pesticides. Concentrations are consistently either non-detectable or well below regulatory limits established by the Canadian Food Inspection Agency, the United States Food and Drug Administration and European Community Directives. Taste testers indicate that these mussels are free of "fishy" taste and aroma and could not distinguish them from "wild" mussels. The mussels' meat yield is significantly higher, reflecting the increase in nutrient availability.
Recent findings suggest mussels grown adjacent to salmon farms are advantageous for winter harvest because they maintain high meat weight and condition index (meat to shell ratio). [1}

1. Haya K, Sephton D, Martin J and Chopin T. 2004. Monitoring of therapeutants and phycotoxins in kelps and mussels co-cultured with Atlantic salmon in an integrated multi-trophic aquaculture system. Bulletin of the Aquaculture Association of Canada.

Community Supported Fisheries

Here's a great example of a CSF in Atlantic Canada !
Check it out !
So true is the fact that more and more we are becoming interested in where our food comes from. We like to know who farmed our vegetables, who raised the cattle we are eating, but we seem to be less concerned about where our fish comes from.
Maybe it's time for a change !

Click here and watch their video !

What does Nova Scotia farm?

A variety of shellfish, finfish, and aquatic plants are farmed in Nova Scotia. 
Farmed species of shellfish include: Soft shell clams, Blue Mussels, American Oysters, European Oysters, Quahogs, and Scallops. 
Finfish that are farmed include: Arctic Char, Halibut, Atlantic Salmon, European Sea Bass and Trout. 
Aquatic plants farmed in Nova Scotia are Irish Moss and Knotted Wrack. [1]

1. http://aansonline.ca/

Fish Poo

What's the scoop on the fish poo when farming in net pens.?

I learned that fish waste impact is basically restricted to the space directly underneath the pens.  Fish farmers monitor waste levels, and you can bet the government can and will order farmers to reduce stock or allow the farm site to fallow ( no net and no fish) if waste levels exceed acceptable standards. Once the fish are harvested, the farmer always leaves the site fallow. The currents break down the organic matter and the area returns to its normal state.

"It is important to understand there is a great deal of difference between fish waste and human or land animal waste. We treat human waste in part because it contains fecal coliform bacteria and human viruses, which pose a significant risk to human health if consumed, and hundreds of chemicals found in cleaners, solvents, and other products used by people every day. Salmon do not produce fecal coliform bacteria and their waste is mostly a product of their feed, which is carefully regulated. Fish waste is a vital part of the marine ecosystem, and does not require treatment, just as animal manure is an important part of the terrestrial ecosystem and is also not treated."[1]

1. nsaquaculture.ca

Eel lake Oysters

Click here to watch the impressive video of Eel lake Oysters.

The life cycle of a Salmon

1. It takes about four months for a salmon egg to hatch. 
2. It then becomes an alevin. Alevins cannot swim, and many get eaten by predators. They hang out in the gravel.
3. After the alevin stage, it is known as a fry. A fry is small. Hence the term "small fry" ? (Probably not.)  He can swim, but he's only an inch or two long. That poor little fry is big prey for many other fish. 
4. The fish then becomes a parr or a  fingerling. You guessed it ... as big as an adult index finger. This stage can last 2 to 3 years.
5. The next stage is the smolt.  The fish is now ready to make the transition from the fresh water where he was born in, into the salt water. I like to think of it as fish puberty. Life's a challenge, he eats a great deal, and grows like crazy. In the wild, out of 8000 eggs, they estimate only 300 salmon reach the smolt stage.
6. Adult is the next stage. And in a few years, when spawning time comes around, they prefer to head right back where they were born to do it.

PCB's in seafood ?

Studies show there are more of PCBs in butter and brown gravy packets than in most types of seafood. Studies also show we eat much, much more PCB's in cattle, poultry, pork, and dairy than we do in seafood. 

"I’m not saying that we shouldn’t be concerned about PCBs in our food.  But I don’t think we should worry about seafood any more than we worry about contamination in beef, chicken, or pork.  Now pass the gravy." [1]

1. https://fishsqueezer.wordpress.com/2013/09/30/are-farmed-fish-safe/

Oysters

Oysters have been harvested in Canada for centuries but their farming began in the 1950s. Today, the majority of oysters sold are supplied by farmers. 
Increasingly, oyster culture has been moving to off-bottom systems that use floating rafts, buoys, and longlines to suspend the shellfish above the ocean floor. 
Multiple studies have shown individual oysters are capable of filtering up to 50 gallons of water per day, and thus oyster reefs can significantly improve water quality and clarity.