During my last semester at Ithaca College I was fortunate enough to be able to part of a team that built a functioning aquaponics to conduct research on under the guidance of Paula Turkon. In case you are unfamiliar with the concept of aquaponics, it is basically the combination of aquaculture (fish-farming), with hydroponics (soil-less plant growing). By combining these two food production systems, the waste that is created by the the fish in an aquaculture system is utilized by the plants as nutrients. This eliminates the environmental issue of water-water effluent encountered in aquaculture, while addressing the lack of nutrients commonly found in hydroponics systems. Thus, nutrients do not need to be constantly pumped into the water in which the plants are growing. This closed-looped system has few environmental draw-backs, and has the potential to produce a great deal of fish protein and nutrient-high biomass for human consumption. This form of food production holds great promise for the future, and taking this course really solidified my passion for sustainable food production.​

     Our research team focused on the feasibility of constructing and maintaining an aquaponics system on a college/university campus, as we believe more institutions should set up systems such as this to conduct research, since there is not a lot available at this time. The team I worked with was split up into parts based on our strengths. I focused on water quality due to my heavy background in chemistry. I used my knowledge of titrations and acid/base reactions in order to help facilitate keeping the aquaponic system's water quality parameters at optimal levels for both plant and fish growth. For less than 1200 dollars we constructed a 100 gallon tank with two 25 gallon grow beds, with the capabilities of being retro-fitted for future research at the college. We also tested out and compared a new grow medium as part of the research project, and discovered that expandable clay balls are the best grow medium to use in an aqupaonics system. I am very optimistic about the future of aquaponics and will definitely apply this knowledge to my future studies, career path, and personal life, as I would one day like to have an aquaponics system in my house.

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