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Susan Bastarache


Susan Bastarache sampling kelp lines at an IMTA site in the Bay of Fundy, Canada (photo: Thierry Chopin). .

M.Sc.: 2001 - 2007

Present occupation: Mother of two children

Thesis: Development of kelp (Saccharina latissima) cultivation as the extractive inorganic component of an integrated aquaculture system

Abstract: The development of sustainable integrated multi-trophic aquaculture (IMTA) systems requires combining fed aquaculture (fish or shrimp) with organic extractive aquaculture (shellfish) and inorganic extractive aquaculture (seaweed). As part of the AquaNet Environmental Integrity Project, we are developing the extractive inorganic component. The entire cycle of rearing Saccharina latissima has been completed both in the laboratory and at the integrated site in Chamcook in the Bay of Fundy, Canada: release in the laboratory of spores from mature macroscopic sporophytes (what we know as kelp), seeding of ropes, germination of gametophytes (the microscopic other generation in the kelp life cycle), sexual maturation of male and female gametophytes, development of zygotes into juvenile sporophytes, which are then transplanted to the site for rapid grow-out.

The productivity, nutrient absorption capacity, and role of this component is being analyzed so that the appropriate proportions between each component (fish, shellfish and seaweed) can be defined in order to develop responsible aquaculture practices in which metabolic/physiological processes of the different co-cultured organisms counter-balance each other within acceptable operational limits and according to food safety guidelines and regulations. Adopting IMTA strategies will be key to the aquaculture industry to increase its environmental, economic and social acceptability.