The Marine School aims to stimulate an environmentally sustainable offshore aquaculture industry in New England and nationwide. Research conducted at the Center addresses critical environmental and ecological questions related to offshore farming: Which species should be farmed and where? What level of discharge the ocean can safely absorb? Where will we find sustainable sources of feed? How do we prevent escapes of farmed fish? How can we design a culture environment that is humane for fish and profitable for the farmer? We believe the solutions to such questions can be found through research and development that takes into account the safety of the people who manage the farms, the well-being of the crops, the integrity and efficiency of the structures and systems, the health of the surrounding environment, the consumers who rely on seafood products, and the dynamic relationships that weave all of these together.
Ongoing research projects include:
- Large-scale production of healthy juvenile winter flounder.
- Blue-mussel farming in a submerged, open-ocean environment.
- Off-shore finfish farming to alleviate pressure on fisheries and meet growing consumer demand.
