Solar-powered aerator experiment begins
POTENTIAL TOOL CONTRA FISH KILL
WITH some help from nature, fish kills in the province will soon be a thing in the past and bangus production will be more profitable. Thanks largely to an innovation in technology developed by a Japanese research insitute.
Reason: The bangus producers in this Bangus Capital and in Sual town, are optimistic that their pilot experiment using solar-powered aerator system will protect their produce from fish kill and ensure their uninterrupted growth.
Makiko Takaoka, general manager of Nomura Research Institute, said this is the first time they will see the whole cycle of bangus production using the solar powered aeration system.
“With this aeration, we can expect more oxygen for the fish, growth rate will be more effective, and mortality will be decreased,” said Takaoka .
Hirano Seiji, senior vice president of Power Bank System that developed the aeration system used in the experiment, said it was first introduced in Japan four years ago and they saw a remarkable growth rate of tuna and oysters.
The experiment on the system for bangus production in the Philippines would take about four to five months and if successful, they intend to introduce it to other Asian countries.
An initial study using solar panel for milkfish production commissioned by the Japanese government Official Development Assistance in 2012 in Laguna was not successful because there was not enough time to validate the results.
This time, Power Bank System Co., Ltd., supported by Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) and the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR), shall perform demonstration to gather additional data, conduct training of staff for the operation of solar-powered aeration system.
Experiment Areas
About 175 pieces of bangus fingerlings were released for each of the four fishponds used as experiment area at the BFAR research facility in Bonuan Binloc village here last Saturday (Aug.16). At Barangay Bacquioen in Sual, about 15, 700 pieces of bangus fingerlings were released in one fish cage for the experiment.
The project introduced “Ukishima,” a floating aeration device consisting of two elements: a) rust- free and light-weight solar panel made of polycarbonate that can be used on the water for a long period of time, and b) micro bubble generator which is an ultrafine air bubble generating device developed by the Prefectural University of Kumamoto that supplies oxygen to the water and stirs the water.
Dr. Westly Rosario, BFAR center chief director, said he hopes the experiment will provide the answer to preventing fish kills, brought by low dissolved oxygen level in fish cage areas.
The aeration is timed to function from 10:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. when oxygen level is low and from 8:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m., 11:00 p.m. to 12 midnight and 2:00 a.m. to 6:00 a.m.
“If found effective and attractive to bangus producers, JICA plans to put up a plant to produce the system to be sold,” Rosario said. (Tita Roces)
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