Thom Nickell

DEPOMOD-modelling the deposition and biological effects of waste solids from marine cage farms

Abstract To enable better predictive capability of the impact from large marine cage fish farms on the benthos and improved objectivity in the regulatory decision-making process, a computer particle tracking model DEPOMOD was developed. DEPOMOD predicts the solids accumulation on the seabed arising from a fish farm and associated changes in the benthic faunal community. The grid generation module allows the user to set up a grid containing information on depth, cage and sampling station positions for the area of interest. Given the information on wastage rates of fish food and faeces and hydrodynamics of the area, the initial deposition of particles on the seabed can then be predicted with the particle tracking model. The resuspension model then redistributes particles according to near-bed current flow fields to predict the net solids accumulated on the seabed within the grid area. From quantitative relationships between benthic community descriptors and solids accumulation, predictions of the level of benthic community impact can then be made. The particle tracking model was validated using sediment trap studies. Model predictions of flux (g/m 2 /day) generally agreed well with field data with an accuracy of ±20% and ±13% for a dispersive and depositional site, respectively. Using parameters from the validated resuspension model (rare among models in this field), semi-empirical quantitative relationships between predicted solids accumulation (g/m 2 /year) and observed Infaunal Trophic Index (ITI) and total individual abundance were established using data from numerous Scottish marine fish farms. A submodel was also validated for predicting feed input throughout a growing cycle for planning purposes. DEPOMOD may be used for assessing the potential impact of a farm throughout a growing cycle, or if the biomass consent is increased. It may also be used in the site selection process of a new farm to investigate the proposed farm position and biomass levels. Prediction of the dispersion of particulates during use of in-feed medicines may also be undertaken.

Bioturbation, sediment fluxes and benthic community structure around a salmon cage farm in Loch Creran, Scotland

Abstract This study examined bioturbation along an organic carbon gradient away from an Atlantic salmon farm and sought to determine relationships between benthic fluxes, mixing intensity and the infaunal community structure. Macrofaunal community structure, abundance and biomass were examined at stations with varying quantities and qualities of organic matter input. In situ benthic chambers were used to determine oxygen and nutrient fluxes and mixing parameters were derived from down core profiles of chlorophyll a (chl a ). Mean oxygen demand of sediments ranged between 8.8 and 467.8 mmol m −2 day −1 , being highest beneath the fish farm and indicating very high rates of community respiration and organic matter diagenesis. Oxygen and nutrient fluxes followed similar trends to community abundance and biomass, declining with increasing distance from the farm. Mixing intensity increased with distance from the farm until returning, at the farthest station, to values similar to those measured beneath the farm. The differences in the community structure between sediments beneath the farm and furthest from it suggest that similar diffusive mixing coefficients are generated by different mechanisms. These results generally follow the successional model of Pearson and Rosenberg [Oceanogr. Mar. Biol. Ann. Rev. 16 (1978) 229.], with the exception of the farthest station, but suggest that the bioturbation potential of the community over short time scales is greatest at stations with intermediate qualities and quantity of organic matter. However, the methods used here to assess mixing over short time scales (i.e. diffusive mixing coefficient and the mixed layer depth) do not account for the activities of deep burrowing infaunal animals, such as Maxmuelleria lankesteri , known to be present at the farthest station.

Validation of a fish farm waste resuspension model by use of a particulate tracer discharged from a point source in a coastal environment

To validate a resuspension model of particulate material (salmonid farm wastes), a UV fluorescent particle tracer was selected with similar settling characteristics. Tracer was introduced to the seabed (water depth ≈30 m) and sediment samples taken on days 0, 3, 10, 17 and 30 to measure the horizontal and vertical distribution of tracer in sediments. A concentric sampling grid was established at radii of 25, 50, 100, 150, 200, 400, 700 and 1, 000 m from the source on transects 30° apart. The bulk of the deployed tracer was initially concentrated in an area 25 m radius from the release point; tracer was observed to steadily decrease to zero over a period of 30 days. In a 200 m region measured from the release point in the direction of the residual current, the redeposition of tracer was low. A Lagrangian particle tracking model was validated using these observed data by varying resuspension model parameters within limits to obtain the best agreement between spatial and temporal distributions. The validated model generally gave good predictions of total mass budgets (±7% of total tracer released), particulary where tracer concentrations were high near the release point. Best fit model parameters (critical erosion shear stress=0.018 N m−2, erodibility constan=60 g m−2 d−1) are at the low end of reported parameters for coastal resuspension models. Such a low critical erosion shear stress indicates that the frequency of resuspension and deposition events for freshly deposited material is high.

Changes in benthos associated with mussel (Mytilus edulis L.) farms on the west-coast of Scotland.

Aquaculture, as a means of food production, is growing rapidly in response to an increasing demand for protein and the over-exploitation of wild fisheries. This expansion includes mussels (family Mytilidae) where production currently stands at 1.5 million tonnes per annum. Mussel culture is frequently perceived as having little environmental impact yet mussel biodeposits and shell debris accumulate around the production site and are linked to changes in the benthos. To assess the extent and nature of changes in benthos associated with mussel farming grab and video sampling around seven mussel farms was conducted. Grab samples were analysed for macrofauna and shell-hash content whilst starfish were counted and the shell-hash cover estimated from video imaging. Shell-hash was patchily distributed and occasionally dominated sediments (maximum of 2116 g per 0.1 m2 grab). Mean shell-hash content decreased rapidly at distances >5 m from the line and, over the distance 1–64 m, decreased by three orders of magnitude. The presence of shell-hash and the distance-from-line influenced macrofaunal assemblages but this effect differed between sites. There was no evidence that mussel farming was associated with changes in macrobenthic diversity, species count or feeding strategy. However, total macrofaunal count was estimated to be 2.5 times higher in close proximity to the lines, compared with 64 m distance, and there was evidence that this effect was conditional on the presence of shell-hash. Starfish density varied considerably between sites but, overall, they were approximately 10 times as abundant close to the mussel-lines compared with 64 m distance. There was no evidence that starfish were more abundant in the presence of shell-hash visible on the sediment surface. In terms of farm-scale benthic impacts these data suggest that mussel farming is a relatively benign way of producing food, compared with intensive fish-farming, in similar environments.