The feasibility of aquaponics in Mauritius

The feasibility of aquaponics in Mauritius

Editor

FAO/IOC ;

Descripción

This report outlines the findings from an investigation into the viability of introducing aquaponics as an alternative technology to sustainably producing freshwater fish as part of the SmartFish program - Technical Assistance for Implementation of a regional fisheries strategy for ESA-IO region. Aquaponics is the integration of hydroponic plant culture in the land based culture of fish. In an aquaponic system the fish supply the nutrients to the plants (in the form of natural wastes) and the p lants form part of the water treatment system (by removing the wastes) from the recirculated fish water. A variety of fish and plants can be co-cultured in an aquaponic system. The benefits of an aquaponic system include; • the use very little new water, • higher yields of fish and plants per unit area than traditional agriculture, • disease and insect resistance to the plants, • no use of fertilizers or pesticides and • systems are scalable to meet the needs of the producer. Mauritius (a small island country) imports the majority of its food crops due to restrictions on water availability and adverse climatic conditions. Hydroponic vegetable production has been established and is starting to expand. As a first step a mission was undertaken to evaluate the viability of introducing aquaponics in Mauritius. The assessment and application of this technology although focused on the economics of Mauritius will have application to many African countries in the region, particularly those wher e freshwater fish are consumed.