The Blue Economy Cooperative Research Centre (BECRC) brings together over 40 partners from 10 countries and will operate until the end of this decade. The overarching aim of the BECRC is to support research that develops new seafood and renewable energy systems that move production offshore safely, economically and sustainably.
Within the BECRC, there are five interconnected Research Programs that have been developed in collaboration with industry and other partners (www.blueeconmycrc.com.au). Research Program 2 (RP2) ‘Seafood and Marine Products’ supports the development of offshore aquaculture systems that provide viable and sustainable growth opportunities.
There is a need to prioritise aquaculture species suitable for novel offshore multispecies systems. This Scoping Project will use a collaborative approach to first rank aquaculture species that are available in Australia and New Zealand, then rank offshore multispecies systems across regions, from temperate to tropical, and list the key challenges and opportunities. The Scoping Project will create a pathway for BECRC decision-making and support the development of future research projects by identifying priority partners and investment.
We look to engage with commercial operators to better understand the characteristics of species they grow and include in our assessment. Please contact Sarah Ugalde (sarah.ugalde@utas.edu.au)