in Permaculture
What is an Aquatic ecosystem?
WETlands: Lakes, ponds
Any ecosystem marshes, swamps, rivers,
estuaries, bays
where water exists
for a majority of the
year and/or growing
season (i.e. the
soils are inundated).
Usually defined by
the watershed it
inhabits. A basin or
drainage pathway.
What is an Aquaculture
system?
A Human
designed
aquatic
ecosystem
managed for
food production
Why Aquaculture?
Increased productivity of aquatic systems
Highly mutlifunctional use of water in
landscape
High quality protein foods
Current fisheries are being ʻminedʼ to
extinction
Waste as a resource
Why Aquaculture?
Physical and ecological basis of Increased
productivity of aquatic system
4-20 x more productive / acre than soil
farming
High conversion ratio of feed : flesh (1.5-3 : 1)
Bioavailable nutrients
Non-food yields
Functions of Water in
Landscape
Reflective Fire Break
Surface Recreation
Transport Irrigation
Thermal Mass
Cooling
Energy
Production
Waste Treatment
Run-off Surface
Energy Storage
Food Production
Design parameters of
Aquaculture systems
Volume, Surface Area, and Edge
Catchment Area, precipitation,
evaporation
Soils and substrate
Depth (deeps and shallows)
Temperature, pH
Aeration, Flow
Nutrient supply
Guilds: plants and animals
Stocking Rates and Harvest
Strucutres
Connections
Design parameters of
Aquaculture systems
Volume, Surface Area,
Guilds: plants and
and Edge
animals
Depth (deeps and
Strucutres
shallows)
Connections
Nutrient supply
Stocking Rate and
Harvest
Design parameters of
Aquaculture systems : Climate
Context
Volume, Surface Area,
and Edge
Catchment Area,
precipitation,
evaporation
Temperature, pH
Aeration, Flow
Design parameters of
Aquaculture systems
Nutrient supply
Feed and Diet of Fish, Crustaceans, Frogs, Ducks…
Bioavailable nutrients for vegetation: manures, litter..
Guilds: Stocking Rates
Animals: Fish, Mollusks, Crustaceans, Amphibians,
Reptiles, Mammals, Birds, Worms, Insects…
Plants: Shoreline, island, emergent, floating,
submerged, algae…
Strucutres: Particularly for harvest, feeding, and
habitat
Rafts, Piers, Animal housing, fences and nets, siphons
and pumps, Trellis, Greenhouse, Shadehouse, Logs,
Connections
Aquatic-terrestrial
connections
The many edges
Islands, peninsulas,
shoreline
Vegetation
Overhanging, shading,
windbreak
Animals
Chickens, pigs, insects, fowl,
reptiles
Irrigation
Structures
Floating, overhanging, next
Permaculture Thinking
Applied
Relative Location
Stacking Functions
Diverse Connections
Next Best Use
Location in Landscape Profile
Zones/Sector planning
Edge Effects
Scale and Orders
Nesting and Tesselation
Run-off vs. Run-
on Surfaces
Position in
Landscape Profile
Inputs, Use, and
Output locations
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Methods of Design
Random Assembly
Deduction from Nature
Zone and Sector planning
Functional Analysis
Flow Diagrams
Observation
Incremental
Design exercise/game:
Where do you want
your pond and who
do you want in and
around it? Production Consumption
Greenhouses
Rooftop
Compost
Thermal Mass
Natural Swimming Pools
Invisible structures associated
with Aquaculture
Socio-cultural
Trend away from ʻFarmedʼ Fish vs.
overfishing of natural waters
Fish is a ʻhealthʼ food
Economic
Assess local markets
Legal
Permits, Sell Live ʻFishʼ
Questions and Comments