Credit: Mohamed El Gazaar (Egypt)
The first photo shows tilapia harvest of grow-out tank in a desert fish farm with a production capacity of 120 tons of fish/year. The production practices are intensified in this farm whereas production ranges from 28-32 kg of tilapia/m3 during a 4-month growing season. The underground water of a temperature of 23C, it is possible to achieve about 2.5 production cycles/year such as the case in this farm. Because as usual, there is no drainage system for waters in desert, the integration between aquaculture with agriculture system is necessary. The agricultural component should be capable to absorb and utilize the water discharge from aquaculture facility. Because of the fertilizing merit of aquaculture water, its use in agriculture enhances its economics and reduces the need and so the costs of chemical fertilizers. The agricultural crops that could integrate with aquaculture vary according to technical as well as economic factors. In the present project, it has been found that tomato sans cantaloupe were the best compatible agricultural crops. The second photo shows the tomato plastic tunnels that are used to protect tomatoes during cold periods.
Please note there are two more posts (Part 2 and 3) that are related to the present project which address the construction and management issues.
Note: We decided not to watermark the photos in order not to upset its clarity. However, we trust you will notify us if you wish to use a picture or more. This is expected and will be appreciated.
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