Pictured are members of the CO2L Flow systems construction team who come together virtually to acknowledge the signing of the contract to begin work on the three new systems. Pictured top row, left to right: Rocky Boschman, Managing Director, Grieg Seafood BC Ltd.; Heather Clarke, Co-owner Poseidon Ocean Systems; Matt Clarke, Co-owner Poseidon Ocean Systems; John Marcus, General Manager, Oxzo Technologies Canada; and Benjamin Del Curto, Project Lead, Oxzo Technologies Canada Pictured second row, left to right: Craig Little, Operations Manager, CPI Equipment Inc.; Kris McNichol, President, CPI Equipment Inc.; Sheryl McNichol, Commercial Manager, CPI Equipment Inc.; Jim Powell, President and CEO, Fidelis Aquaculture Management; Gonzalo Boehmwald, Commercial Assistant Manager, Oxzo Technologies Canada; Dean Trethewey, Saltwater Operations Director, Grieg Seafood BC Ltd.; (inset screen) Amy Jonsson, Communications Director, Grieg Seafood BC Ltd.
CAMPBELL RIVER – After trialing a made-in-BC semi-closed technology solution at its farms off the Sunshine Coast region, Grieg Seafood BC Ltd. (Grieg) has announced it will be proceeding with the installation of these semi-closed system at all three of its farms in Esperanza Inlet, off the west coast of Vancouver Island.
The new CO2L Flow system (pronounced Cool Flow) is a form of semi-closed containment, which allows for farmers to raise or lower custom designed farm enclosures – ensuring the farmed fish benefit from natural ocean conditions, while also providing protection for wild salmon.
The system has been used successfully to rear several generations of fish at Grieg’s farms in the Sunshine Coast region. In all the trials, farmers noted better growth, lower mortality, better feed conversion rates (meaning the fish are more effective at converting feed into growth), and most significantly – a dramatic reduction in the need for sea lice treatments.
“As a company, we are always looking for ways to improve our operations, and this includes transitioning from standard farming equipment, to new, cutting-edge technology aimed at reducing potential impacts from our operations. This new system utilizes retractable barriers, which are capable of being lowered to 15 metres, fully encapsulating the sides of the farm. This has several benefits, including preventing the lateral interaction of wild and farmed salmon populations, providing protection for farmed populations from harmful algae, and allowing our farmers to better control water quality in the system using a unique aeration technology,” says Rocky Boschman, Managing Director for Grieg Seafood BC Ltd.
“As ocean-based farmers, one of the most common questions or concerns we hear is regarding sea lice, and the transfer of lice between wild and farmed populations. The CO2L Flow system with its barrier protection has resulted in drastically reduced sea lice numbers on the farmed population, which in turn reduces the need for us to treat. During the trial period at our west coast site, we were able to keep sea lice levels so low that the fish did not require treatment for lice. Overall, we are pleased with the results and there is no denying that this new system represents a transition towards what in-ocean farms can one day become.”
What sets this system apart from others is the use of local knowledge, and on-the-ground learning to guide the development of a system which would work in partnership with nature to address challenges.
“I have been farming in these waters for over 30 years. In that time, I have learned that nature is the best engineer. If you want to find a solution, you need to work with the ocean and the natural conditions. So, when we started looking at how we could adapt semi-closed technology into our operations, we looked first and foremost to the oceans’ naturally occurring deep, clean water as a guide,” says Dean Trethewey, Seawater Production, Certifications and Regulatory Director. “The CO2L Flow Max system has taken some tried and true technology, such as sea lice curtains, and paired them with cutting edge aeration technology, to create a completely new system. During sensitive wild salmon migration periods or times when we know there is harmful algae in the region, we can lower the barriers on the farm, forming a barrier between the wild salmon and the farmed population, this prevents lateral interaction, and significantly reduces the transmission of sea lice between the populations. The barriers can be fully lifted outside of these periods, allowing the farmed fish to benefit from natural ocean conditions, temperatures, currents, and oxygen levels.”
To bring this technology to life, Grieg relied on the expertise, knowledge and successful collaboration with several Vancouver Island based technology and services companies – like CPI Equipment and Poseidon Ocean Systems. A leading international oxygen solution company, Oxzo Technologies, was also involved in the creation of some components for the system.
Although the system has shown amazing results in initial trials, Grieg continues to look for ways to improve the system to help further reduce any potential impacts from its operations.
“As a company, we will continue to look for ways in which we can innovate and continue to improve our operations. Currently, the new system already has tremendous benefits through the elimination of lateral interaction between wild and farmed populations and provides both welfare and performance benefits for our farmed salmon – but it doesn’t collect solid waste which is the next opportunity we want to address. We are continuing to look for solutions that will support the recovery of solid waste and ways in which it could be used for some type of value-add product like fertilizer or soil enrichment,” added Boschman. “We will continue to look to nature, local technology, and our farmers to help provide us with solutions as we continue to innovate, transition and improve.”
The system will be installed at all three farms in Esperanza Inlet (Lutes Creek farm, Steamer Point farm and the Esperanza farm) in time for the outmigration of juvenile wild salmon in early 2023.
To view an animation of the system, please visit the Grieg Seafood BC website (https://griegseafood.com/news/video:-watch-how-grieg-bc’s-new-semi-closed-containment-technology-works).