INFORME LAYMAN
1. INTRODUCCIN
El cultivo de mejilln es una actividad de gran
relevancia econmica en las reas costeras de Espaa
e Irlanda. En las ras gallegas existen alrededor de 3.360
bateas de mejilln que producen del orden de 290.000
Tm anuales de este molusco (ao 2004).
CONTENIDOS
1. INTRODUCCIN.............................................................................................................................................. 1
2. EL PROYECTO................................................................................................................................................ 1
3. RESULTADOS DE LAS PRINCIPALES TAREAS DEL PROYECTO.......................................................................... 2
Heces y pseudoheces
de mejilln y de la
epifauna asociada
Desprendimientos de
pias de mejilln
Excedentes de laboreo
Figura 1
2. EL PROYECTO
El objetivo principal del proyecto GESTINMER
es desarrollar un sistema de gestin integral de los
excedentes producidos por el cultivo del mejilln, con
la finalidad de reducir su impacto ambiental y recuperar
la heterogeneidad natural del ecosistema, estudiando al
mismo tiempo la posibilidad de valorizacin de dichos
residuos mediante su utilizacin para la recuperacin
de suelos de minas.
Figura 4
Figura 2
Resultados
Se presentan distintos espesores y distinta distribucin
granulomtrica en funcin de la posicin (interna, media
o externa) del polgono dentro de la ra, aprecindose un
contenido mayor de fracciones gruesas en el exterior
de las ras, donde las fuertes corrientes impiden la
acumulacin de materiales finos.
Figura 5
Figura 3
hidrodinmicas de cada zona y permite la mezcla
homognea de las partculas finas con sedimentos de
distinto origen.
Los fondos de los polgonos prospectados se
caracterizan por una distribucin regular de acmulos
2
Figura 6
Durante los ensayos en planta realizados posteriormente con una centrifuga decantadora proporcionada
por Westfalia Separator Iberica, S.A. (Fig 7) se comprob que la aplicacin de este tipo de equipos
para el clarificado de las aguas y el deshidratado de los fangos daba resultados satisfactorios en lo que
respecta al extracto seco obtenido y a los rendimientos. Sin embargo, su implantacin a escala real
requerira la instalacin de una o varias centrfugas a bordo de la draga, en funcin del flujo de trabajo.
Adems, tendra que considerarse una fase de desarenado previo, la adicin de polielectrolito y el uso
de materiales resistentes a la corrosin por agua de mar. Todos estos requisitos conllevan notables
dificultades tcnicas y logsticas y un elevado coste econmico que en la prctica podra comprometer
su viabilidad.
A. Proporcin slido/lquido: El porcentaje de slidos es bastante alto (aprox. 70-90%) dependiendo del tipo
de material que se introduzca en el saco. Cuanto mayor sea el volumen de conchas en el material frente
a los fangos, menor ser el contenido de agua (Fig. 6).
C. Rendimiento: Los flujos de trabajo son muy variables y pueden oscilar entre 20m3/h en el caso de
las bombas ms pequeas hasta los 2000 m3/h que pueden superar las grandes dragas operadas
desde un barco o pontona. Cuanto mayor sea el caudal de estas bombas, mayor ser la capacidad de
almacenamiento necesaria, as como la inversin y los requisitos tcnicos y humanos.
Debe prestarse especial atencin a la respuesta de estas tcnicas en presencia de slidos de gran tamao que no
son capaces de triturar, ya que se obstruyen fcilmente.
Dragado neumtico:
El equipo empleado para este ensayo consisti en una bomba de succin italiana patentada por la marca Pneuma
S.r.l. modelo 100/20-UN (Fig. 8) cuya principal caracterstica segn las especificaciones tcnicas del fabricante, era
el elevado porcentaje de slidos (70-90%) en relacin al volumen de lquido movilizado.
Figura 7
Figura 8
5
Dragado mecnico:
Consisti en el ensayo de dos tipos de cucharas accionadas hidrulicamente y suspendidas mediante cable: una
cuchara bivalva (Fig. 9) y otra tipo pulpo (Fig. 10).
Figura 9
Figura 10
INTECMAR
CIMA
IEO
Figura 16
Figura 15
9
Resultados
Los excedentes de laboreo se generan a bordo
principalmente en la fase de desdoble y en la cosecha
para fresco (Fig. 16).
La cantidad producida es equivalente al 18.8% del
peso total del mejilln para consumo en fresco y el
1.2% del peso total del mejilln destinado a fbrica. En
base a esto y considerando que en Galicia, en 2004,
se produjeron 263.484 Tm de mejilln de los cuales
115.127 Tm se destinaron al consumo en fresco, se
estima que la cantidad de excedentes de laboreo rond
ese ao las 23.600 Tm.
Figura 19
i) Sera necesario adaptar la maquinaria de algunos
barcos, ya que su disposicin actual hace que los
excedentes caigan al mar.
ii) Sera necesario el diseo o seleccin de unos sacos
Figura 17
Figura 18
VENTAJAS
Olores fuera de los puertos
menos molestias
ms facilidades para
los barcos
ms posibilidades de
xito del sistema
Menor coste
Logstica ms sencilla
Figura 20
11
Resultados
En ambos casos, su alto contenido en CaCO3 y
su contenido de C, N y S ya permitan prever buenos
resultados como corrector de suelos cidos de minas.
Los resultados de los ensayos indicaron que el Tecnosol
artificial conteniendo un 30 % de residuo de laboreo de
mejilln, constituye el mejor preparado edfico para la
restauracin y revegetacin de los suelos de la mina de
Figura 23
Figura 24
13
Figura 25
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GESTINMER PROJECT
System for the integral management of the waste produced by
the mussel cultured in rafts and longlines
LAYMANS REPORT
1. INTRODUCTION
LIST OF CONTENTS
1. INTRODUCTION.............................................................................................................................................. 1
2. THE PROJECT................................................................................................................................................ 2
3. RESULTS OF THE MAIN TASKS OF THE PROJECT............................................................................................ 2
Detachment of
groups of mussels
Figure 1
1
2. THE PROJECT
The main objective of the Gestinmer Project is to
develop a system for the integral management of the
waste generated by mussel farming with the purpose
of reducing its environmental impact and recovering
the natural heterogeneity of the ecosystem. At the same
time, it approaches the study of the possibilities for
using waste through their use in restoring soils, tailings/
dumps and wetlands degraded by mines.
The project has been promoted by the Regional
Galician Department of Fisheries and Maritime Affairs,
coordinated by CETMAR and co-financed under LIFEEnvironment Programme. The Regulatory Council for the
Galician Mussel, the producers organization OPMEGA
have participated as partners. Other participants are
the University of Santiago de Compostela, the Instituto
Tecnolxico para o Control do Medio Mario de Galicia
(INTECMAR, Technological Institute for Monitoring the
Marine Environment of Galicia), the Instituto Espaol de
Oceanografa (IEO, Oceanographic Centre of Vigo) and
the Centro de Investigaciones Marias (CIMA, Marine
Research Centre).
Figure 4
The bottoms prospected are characterized by a regular
distribution of mounds of shells, which coincide with
the sitting of rafts on the surface, in this case fastened
to two moorings (Fig. 3). These accumulations have
a truncated pyramid shape, with a square base, and
an average height of around 0.5 and 1 m. On both
sides, they have orientated depressions and variable
dimensions, reaching down to a depth of 50 cm.
These depressions are the grooves formed by the
mooring chains due to the action of tides and wave
motion (Fig. 4).
Figure 5
Figure 2
Different dredging techniques were compared in terms of the following premises:
Results
From the results obtained on bottom samples, the
difference was noted between the external sector and
the mid and internal sectors of the ria, observing that
the accumulation of fine-grained material mainly occurs
A. Avoiding the generation of turbidity so that the effects on the mussel culture can be minimized.
B. Extracting a material with the least possible content of water, making transport by road viable for
subsequent use of the same in regenerating mine land.
C. Achieving a good output rate in order to make the operation economically viable.
Figure 3
2
In the course of the tests carried out with the decanting centrifuge, provided by Westfalia Separator
Ibrica, S.A. (Fig. 7), it was verified that the application of this type of system for clarifying the waters and
dehydrating the mud deposits is technically viable since both the results obtained (dry extract of mud
deposits) and performance (treatment flow) proved satisfactory.
Figure 6
Nevertheless, its implementation on a full-scale would require installing one or several centrifuges on
board (depending on the work flow), and would have to be accompanied by a prior de-sanding and adding
polyelectrolyte. Integrating this system in dredging operations entails very high costs and considerable
logistic difficulties that compromise its viability.
A. Solid/Liquid proportion: The percentage of solids is fairly high (approx. 70-90%), depending on the type
of material inserted into the bag. The greater the volume of shells in the material in terms of sludge
deposits, the lesser the water content. (Fig. 6).
C. Output rate: Work flows are highly variable and range from 20 m3/hr. in the smaller pumps to 2000 m3/hr
or more in the larger dredgers. The greater the flow through these pumps, the higher the storage capacity
needed, and therefore, the greater will be the technical and human requirements.
B. Turbidity: Practically zero, since the resuspension of fine sediments is fairly limited, this is generated on
the bottom and disperses rapidly due to current action.
C. Output rate: Output rate is very low in the case of extracting fine sediment and shells (1 m3 per hour of
diving time means from 3 to 5 m3 /day), but is efficient enough for removing solid objects found under
rafts: ropes, tyres, bags of netting, etc. (1 m3 /15 min.).
Dredging with a hydraulic pump:
There is a wide variety of hydraulic pumps on the market. Some are submergible and can be handled by divers,
whereas others are installed on board ship. The Stanley pump is the type of suction pump handled by divers that
was selected to be tested.
Results in terms of the premises
When selecting the various systems, attention needs to be paid to their response to large sized solids that they
are incapable of grinding down.
Dredging with a pneumatic pump
The system used for this type of dredging involved an Italian suction pump, by the make Pneuma S.r.l., Model
100/20-UN (Fig. 8). According to the manufacturer, the main characteristic is its high solid percentage (70-90%) of
solids in terms of the volume of liquid set in motion.
Results in terms of the premises
A. Solid/Liquid proportion: In the framework of the Gestinmer Project, it was verified that the content in
solids is far less than expected, and can be compared to that of a hydraulic suction pump (<15%).
B. Turbidity: Apparently zero on the surface.
A. Solid/Liquid proportion: The volumes of fluid displaced are very high in terms of the amount of solid
mobilized (10-20%). Therefore, it is only possible to consider the technical viability of this system if a
dewatering system could be coupled on board. The overflow is not acceptable due to the high percentage
of fine-grained sediment present in this type of material that does not encourage a rapid decanting
process, whereas it would cause turbidity.
C. Output rate: In view of the high flow in the pump (up to 120 m3/hr), the filling time for every 5 m3 container
was very short (2 min.). If coupling a centrifuging system as described above, it would be necessary to
install at least two large sized decanting centrifuges working in parallel.
The conclusion is that this system is not suitable for
this type of material as it requires a more compact,
homogenous sediment to reach its values of maximum
efficiency.
This extraction technique can be discarded since it
holds no advantages over a hydraulic suction dredge,
despite the higher costs.
Figure 7
4
Figure 8
5
Mechanical dredging:
This entailed testing two types of hydraulically driven grabs and suspended from a cable: clamshell grab (Fig. 9)
and octopus grab (Fig. 10). In order to minimize the effect of turbidity, a 4 m. high silt screen was installed, in a 6 m.
sided square shape that was secured on board the ship.
Figure 9
Figure 10
C. Output rate: This depends on the volume of the bucket, although output rate per day is determined by the
storage capacity on board and the distance to the landing port. In the course of this pilot action, from 18
to 24 MT/hr. were obtained with a 600 L bucket and 5 MT/hr. with a 200 L crab.
The environmental monitoring of the pilot action for sediment dredging was carried out with the collaboration of
the following institutions:
Figure 12
INTECMAR
Analysis of dissolved organic matter and dissolved inorganic nutrients (nitrate, nitrite,
ammonium, phosphate and silicate)
Evaluate concentration levels of aromatic polycyclic hydrocarbons, organochlorate
compounds and metals in M. galloprovincialis
CIMA
Analysis of the production variables: growth, mortality and biomass. Evaluation of the
impact of extracting sediments underneath rafts farming M. galloprovincialis (Fig.
13)
IEO
Identification and quantification of microalgae cysts that are potential toxin producers.
Evaluation of the impact of extracting sediments on the presence of dynoflagellate
cysts in the sediment and water column.
Figure 11
Gaps of knowledge
Figure 14
Despite the fact that the results obtained from the
demonstration actions make it possible to respond to a
large part of the objectives of the project, in the course
of the tasks, diverse queries and areas where there is a
lack of knowledge arose that need to be cleared up before
designing a management strategy for sediments.
It is considered essential to continue conducting
studies in order to determine the risks and benefits
that may arise from extracting sediments (both for the
ecosystem and for mussel farming) and to evaluate
8
Figure 16
Results
The mussel byproduct waste is produced on board
mainly at the thinning out stage and the harvest for fresh
consumption (Fig 16). The build up in harvesting mussel
for processing are not considered since they originate
on land and, therefore, are not for integrating into the
management system put forward. The amount of mussel
by-product waste generated is 18.8% of the total weight
of the mussel produced for consumption as fresh, and
1.2% of the total of mussel for plant processing.
Taking these percentages into account, it is estimated
that in 2004, taking the Galician rias as a whole, from
263,484 MT of mussel produced, and a total of 115,127
tonnes of mussel were sold for fresh consumption,
Figure 19
could be in port in cases where the waste byproduct is
kept stored for several days on the platform and, when
reaching port, the discharging process takes a long
time.
Figure 17
Figure 18
ADVANTAGES
Less complaints
More comfortable
Lower costs
More possibilities
for the system to be
successful
Simpler logistics
Figure 20
11
Results
Considering the composition of the waste byproduct
from operations and of the biogenic sediments sampled,
in view of its liming capacity (high content in CaCO3),
organic C and N content, texture and content in S, it was
easy to demonstrate that is appropriate for use as a
corrector and amender for recovering soils, dumps and
wetlands in acidic mines.
The results indicated that the artificial Tecnosol
Figure 24
13
5. TRANSFERABILITY OF RESULTS
The works carried out have made it possible to
identify the most viable management techniques and
systems, from the technical and economic point of view,
both for sediments accumulated on the bottom and for
mussel byproduct generated on board. Their limitations
and improvement measures have been detected as well
as the uncertainties and knowledge gaps that need
to be clarified in order to take decisions regarding the
different management operations.
The results obtained can be transferred to other areas
in the European Union and the rest of the world where
molluscs are farmed both on rafts and using other
Figure 25
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