Eureka! Is ocean farming the future?

Jonathan Chan, from Auckland Grammar School, has won the Eureka Award Gold Scholarship sponsored by NIWA for the most innovative and creative science, technology and/or engineering solution that addresses issues at the core of the Sustainable Seas National Science Challenge.

Jonathan’s presentation, The Future of Farming: Restorative Ocean Farming, discussed a vertical ocean farming system for kelp and shellfish, which could efficiently produce food, fertilizer, animal feed, and biofuel without the need for fertilizers.

Additionally, these species are restorative crops – ie they benefit the environment as well as having an economic value. Each species addresses an environmental issue, such as fixing excess nitrogen or soaking up carbon dioxide.

Jonathan said: “I chose my topic because when I read about it in Popular Science in January, I felt that it really resonated with New Zealand's image of environmental sanctity. I think that the discharge of chemicals into our oceans, either through wastewater or via dirty rivers, is something that should be addressed.”