The Urban Aquaculture Center

A Food Production and Educational Facility Utilizing Urban Aquaculture and Agriculture To:

Revitalize Vacant Urban Buildings
Develop Urban Empty Brownfields
Employ Underutilized Labor Pools
Extend HVAC Engineering to Aquaculture and Hydroponics

Scope of Project

Using the principles of permaculture, our Urban Aquaculture Center (UAC) will develop a 150,000 square foot indoor aquaculture/agriculture production and research facility on 5 acres of redevelopment land in the city of Milwaukee.

The UAC Will Be a Community and Visitor Friendly Resource Providing:

• Jobs and Employment
• Aquaculture Food Production
• Polyculture Research and Development
• Agriculture Food Production
• Fish and Produce Processing with Commercial Kitchen
• Retail, Wholesale and Internet Sales and Marketing
• Public Demonstration and Educational Curriculum
• Fresh Fish and Produce Market
• Public Restaurant and Gift Shop

The Urban Aquaculture Center: Founding Document

A Food Production and Educational Facility Showcasing Urban Aquaculture

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

In the interest of Milwaukee’s economic development, fresh water conservation and bio-security, the Urban Aquaculture Center (UAC) will develop a 150,000-square-foot indoor aquaculture/agriculture production and research facility, with attached greenhouse and outdoor components. Five acres of redevelopment land, preferably along the Hank Aaron Trail and Menomonee River in the City of Milwaukee, or an unused factory site will be transformed into an educational campus and tourist magnet. A 200,000-gallon aquaculture production center, along with a greenhouse and research facilities, will be the principal sustaining elements. Polyculture and aquaponics demonstrations for the public, including classrooms and curricula focusing on urban agriculture will be housed in the educational center. A restaurant, gift shop, and fish market will provide additional jobs and enhance the appeal of this educational attraction.

Concept Development inspired by a fish farm in Costa Rica

Jonathan Bales and Leon Todd

© 2006 joncbales@yahoo.com leontodd@execpc.com

A Public/Private Enterprise

The Urban Aquaculture Center being proposed for Milwaukee will demonstrate that aquaculture and food production can occur in an urban environment in tune with nature as well as with the community. Armed with an appreciation for sustainable production and emission containment, the Urban Aquaculture Center will demonstrate that aquaculture and green food production can occur in processes mimicking nature. Water used to grow fish can be reused to produce other edible products such as aquaponically grown vegetables. This is a responsible reuse of water, a demonstration of resource conservation and effluent-wise farming. Activities are currently underway in the Menomonee Valley to realize a new urban paradigm involving green awareness and sustainability. These will be enhanced and expanded by urban agriculture. The Urban Aquaculture Center involves both public and private components. Through a social entrepreneurship arrangement, a non-profit educational center called the Urban Aquaculture Center will own and operate a large-scale urban fish farm. The mission of both components is to focus public attention upon the possibilities of urban agriculture.

Milwaukee Should Grow Fish

According to the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) in its recent document entitled State of World Aquaculture 2006, “Aquaculture, probably the fastest growing food producing sector, now accounts for almost 50 percent of the world’s food fish and is perceived as having the greatest potential to meet the growing demand for aquatic food.”

Aquaculture in the city represents a new idea that positively affects our food security. Human activity on this planet is systematically fishing out our oceans. A multi-national study has concluded that if the trend is not reversed, all of the world’s fishing stocks will collapse by 2048.1 Milwaukee is blessed with the necessary ingredients for successful fish farming. We have plenty of fresh water, a willing labor pool, and a ready market for fish. From the studies presented in the above FAO document, it is clear that aquaculture is developing, expanding, and intensifying in almost all regions of the world. As the global population expands, demand for aquatic food products is expected to increase. Globally, production from capture fisheries has leveled off, and most of the main fishing areas have reached their maximum potential. Capture fisheries will not be able to meet growing demand for aquatic food.

Aquaculture expansion is supported by the governments of both Canada and the United States, but some public opposition has been generated over environmental concerns. These concerns center on nutrient pollution, escapes, competition with wild fish, disease transmission, and seafood safety. There is considerable misinformation being circulated regarding aquaculture, its environmental effects, and the health risks of consuming cultured products. Many of these objections can be countered by isolating growing systems and using de-chlorinated city drinking water in a Recirculating Aquaculture System (RAS).

Innovative approaches are necessary in the new century to counter threats, both domestic and international. A single urban fish farm does not make a significant contribution in response to a food security crisis, but it is a demonstration of how others can do the same thing, a valuable tool by its example. Other reasons for expansion of aquaculture are the possible loss of poultry food sources caused by the H5N1 avian influenza virus,2 and capture fish by VHS viral hemorrhagic septicemia.3 There is an increased appreciation of the need to keep food sources safe from parasites, disease, and deliberate contamination. In his farewell address, former HUD Secretary Tommy Thompson commented on the vulnerability of our food supply to terrorism.

The US is behind in the development of aquaculture. China is responsible for 69.6% of the world’s farmed fish, and other Asian countries account for another 21.9%. North America produces only 1.3% of the world’s aquaculture, 4although much research regarding fisheries comes from the United States.

Outcomes

• Provide Education in Urban Agriculture
• Employ Underutilized Labor Pools
• Develop Empty Urban Brownfields into Green Zones
• Extend HVAC Engineering to Aquaculture and Hydroponics
• Provide Community Food Security
• Demonstrate Responsible Urban Farming

Phase I

• File as Corporate Entity with 501©(3) non-profit status
• Develop Business Plan and Budgetary Production Model
• Identify Research Grants
• Identify Attractive Site Locations
• Field Site Options From Milwaukee DCD
• Let Other Agencies and Corporations Vet Initial Concepts
• Assess Engineering Readiness
• Research Necessary Permits
• Discuss Concept and Encourage Feedback

Phase II

The aquaculture production facility will be established as the initial economic underpinning for the Center and, in time, the facility will help provide for the completion of the fully integrated Center.

Phase III

After the construction, start-up, and business stabilization phases of the aquaculture facility, the UAC will continue development of its full urban polyculture/agricultural facility plan. These phases will include demonstration and educational venues open to the public. The Center will also have a polyculture research area. A restaurant along with retail fish, produce, and gift sales will be folded into the site so as to make the UAC a complete educational and retail destination.

The UAC Will Be a Community-and Visitor-Friendly Green Resource Providing:

• Urban Aquaculture Controlled Food Production
• Research and Development Opportunity (in collaboration with the Great Lakes WATER Institute and Growing Power)
• Greenhouse Food Production
• Fish and Produce Processing with Commercial Kitchen
• Retail, Wholesale, and Internet Sales and Marketing
• Fresh Fish and Produce Market
• Public Restaurant and Gift Shop
• Demonstration of Home Aquaculture Systems
• Learning Center for All Ages

Project Motivations

• Need for Midwestern cities to reinvent themselves.
• Creation of jobs in Milwaukee.
• Proximity to market and labor pool
• Aquaculture is one of the fastest growing sectors of the agriculture industry.
• Per capita fish consumption, especially among younger age groups, is increasing
• Ingestion of heavy metals in fish from capture fisheries has been linked with health concerns, including mercury and cadmium. 5,6
• Potential impact of H5N1 avian influenza virus and VHS viral hemorrhagic septicemia on the nation’s protein supply
• The US is currently faced with an annual seafood trade deficit of $8,000,000,000 .7
• Need for bio-security of food sources:
  • parasites
  • disease
  • terrorism

Project Opportunities

• This facility will provide over 10 full-time employment positions in the initial start-up phase of the commercial aquaculture division. Full development of the UAC will require over 50 positions to be filled. The UAC has been collaborating with the Great Lakes WATER Institute regarding technical aspects of fish production.

• Sponsoring organizations can participate in the development of the technological, architectural, and growing systems, giving them opportunities to commercialize innovations developed along the way. Full design and development of the initial and ongoing venues and systems will present the need to develop new ways of managing air, water, and waste systems. Some other areas of developmental opportunity are system data gathering and analysis for improved function and productivity as well as providing detection and alarms for system malfunction, security, and bio-security.

• Corporate partners and sponsors will be welcome to help develop this opportunity. Initial equity investments to put the commercial fish production operation on the ground at a site large enough to accommodate full development of the Urban Aquaculture Center is estimated to require between 5.5 to 8 million dollars. This estimated range is necessary to accommodate variations in building renovation, water treatment, and the land and structural resources available at the chosen site.

• Extension and continuing education will be available for industry, groups, and individuals, allowing Milwaukee to become a regional leader in aquaculture.

Definitions:

Aquaculture

Aquaculture is the farming of fish, mollusks, crustaceans, aquatic plants, and other natural aquatic resources and organisms. The UPC will utilize a Recirculating Aquaculture System (RAS) for its core food production activities and will incorporate pond culture into the research, demonstration, educational, and aesthetic areas.

Recirculating Aquaculture System (RAS)

A recirculating aquaculture system (RAS) is an aquaculture growing system that recycles its culture water, filters that water physically, chemically, and biologically, and returns it clean and safe to the species being grown.

Aquaponics

Aquaponics is the blending of aquaculture (typically RAS) and hydroponic agriculture. This method uses nutrient-rich fish water and effluent wastes for plant production.

Polyculture

This type of aquaculture is accomplished by stocking species with different feeding habits and different habitat preferences, but not necessarily together. Water used initially for growing fish might be used again for shell fish, mollusks and plants; waste products of primary species can provide for production of other species. Another definition of polyculture is stocking two or more complementary species in the same water thereby increasing the yield of a given volume of water. This requires experimentation to arrive at a balanced system which may contain both plants and animals. Integrated multi-trophic aquaculture (IMTA) is a practice in which the by-products (wastes) from one species are recycled to become inputs for another in a balanced and sustainable system. Multi-trophic refers to the incorporation of species from different trophic or nutritional levels in the same system.

Why Raise Fish?

• Recent advances in recirculating aquaculture systems (RAS) have allowed certain commodity species, such as Wisconsin’s native yellow perch, to be commercially grown indoors.

• Perch can now be grown comfortably and healthily at production rates between 1.25 – 1.50 lbs. of fish per gallon of water per year in RAS. This production rate would deliver approximately 975,000 fish per year, equaling about 135,000 pounds of finished fillets.

• This production rate will allow a 200,000-gallon facility placed indoors on 50,000 square feet of floor space to produce the same amount of perch as 90 acres of ponds in the countryside. In other words, the farm can now be moved to the city where the population densities create a large local market for fresh fish. A minimum 45 to 1 savings in land use, and untold savings in transportation costs can be realized. Even more notable is water usage: the water necessary to fill the 90 acres of ponds the first year alone would run a comparable RAS system for 21 years.

• The Great Lakes Basin communities, such as Milwaukee, Chicago, Toronto, and Detroit, with a combined population of over 35 million hungry mouths, have a long tradition of eating perch. Presently, the Great Lakes provide 110 million pounds of fish for consumption annually, which equals a little more than 3 pounds per capita in this region. Given that average yearly per capita consumption of fish nationally is close to 16 pounds, there is clearly an unmet potential demand for locally grown native fish species in a region known for its “Friday Night Fish Fry”.

• Wisconsin grown yellow perch are not presently being marketed outside the region because of shortfalls in commercially available supplies. The majority of locally consumed perch is imported from Canada and is commercially harvested on Lake Erie. In 2007, fisheries managers in the Great Lakes have reduced the yellow perch harvest by over 5 million pounds.

• Urban agriculture will likely become an integral part of any successful city. The Metro Milwaukee Region presently has a 16-million-pound per-year local market demand for food fish. With only a 1% local market share capture, the UAC aquaculture facility would be at its full output capacity. Regional and Internet sales could easily justify expansion and increased job development sooner than expected.

Background and Mission of the Founders

Jonathan Bales

joncbales@yahoo.com

“My vision for the Urban Aquaculture Center is to develop a fish production-oriented educational center in a pleasant setting in Milwaukee to demonstrate that aquaculture is a viable and sustainable farming enterprise in a green urban environment.”

Jonathan was raised in Milwaukee, attended Bay View High School, and graduated from UWM in 1966 with a degree in botany. He served with the U.S. Navy as a flight instructor in basic jet training and as an aircraft carrier pilot flying A-6 Intruders in the Mediterranean Sea. In the 1990s he served as Commissioner for the Housing Authority in the City of Milwaukee. Jonathan recently sold his successful coffee plantation and trout farm in Costa Rica because a permanent move to Costa Rica to manage the farm on site was not possible for his family. His motivation has now shifted to promoting fish farming for the people of Milwaukee.

Jonathan’s Trout Farm in Costa Rica

Leon Todd

leontodd@execpc.com

“It’s all about growing good protein, free of environmental contaminants, in a recirculating system that doesn’t pollute. We can reap global benefits from brownfield redevelopment.”

Leon graduated from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee (UWM) School of Education-Cultural Foundation with a MS in 1972. He received an MBA from the UWM School of Business Administration in 1969 and also acquired a BA in Latin & Greek Classic Studies at Northwestern Lutheran College in 1965. After serving 5 years as Director of Sales and Marketing for Rexnord’s Data Systems Division, in May of 1987, Leon became a Managing Partner with Strategic Technologies Consulting, located in Milwaukee, and is presently Director of Strategic Planning, Marketing and Public Relations for the firm. In 1975, Leon was elected to the MPS Board of School Directors, held a citywide seat, and served until 1981. He was a candidate for state superintendent in 1977 and was re-elected to a MPS district seat (District 3) in 1994 and again in 1995.

Former Director Todd has long recognized that public school education has been the route to the middle class for African American children. He is a frequent guest lecturer, op-ed columnist, and panel speaker on a wide variety of issues related to public school education, school choice, and charter schools.

Aquaculture Facts

Farm Raised Fish Production Increased 9% per Year Over the Last Ten Years

• The global annual fish “wild catch” peaked at 96 million tons in the year 2000. This harvest has now declined to 90 million tons per year.

• Since 1950, the number of large predatory fish such as tuna, shark, and swordfish has dropped by 90%.

• Every day some 4 million vessels scour the oceans and inland waterways for 493 million pounds of fish to meet the world’s demand for just one day.

• As a result of such massive efforts, 7 of the top 10 species have been fully exploited or overexploited.

• For example, the average weight of blue shark harvested in the wild diminished from 114.6 lbs. in 1950 to 48.5 lbs. by 1990.

• Over 80% of salmon consumed today are farm raised.

• Aquaculture is now the fastest growing sector of the global food production industry.

• To help meet the demand, farm-raised fish now supply nearly 50% of this protein source, and the aquaculture (fish farming) industry today is growing at better than 9% annually.

• Global demand for fish products is forecast to continue while reaching double-digit annual increases sometime in this decade.

Facts according to UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), and other articles

Symbioses and Collaboration Opportunities With The Urban Aquaculture Center

• The Urban Aquaculture Center is a perfect demonstration venue for a new Green Milwaukee. In addition to education our purpose is the growing of fish and produce involving the elements of reduce, reuse, and recycle in a sustainable production cycle which mimics nature as closely as possible. Other public attractions such as the Milwaukee County Domes may wish to collaborate with the UAC.

• A wet lab technology center can be available for various groups interested in experimentation.

• The commercial agriculture operations will focus on a few high-value cash crops that can be converted to value added products in the commercial kitchen. Basil into pesto is a likely candidate, and cilantro, peppers and tomatoes into fresh salsa is another.

• Interior and exterior growing spaces will complement each other by sharing waste water and waste products to increase production.

• Surplus solar heated air from the greenhouse will share its energy with the fish production module in exchange for air with higher levels of carbon dioxide and moisture, which are off-gassed during the bio-filtration phase of the recirculating aquaculture system.

• Fertilizers derived from the waste products will be used in the growing of produce, and surpluses will be commercially marketed to gardeners and other growing facilities around the area.

Polyculture Demonstration and Research Facility The Urban Aquaculture Center

• This portion of the campus will have venues open to the public to view innovations and ongoing successes of the UAC. Basic and applied research may be conducted by UW, UWM, Great Lakes Water Institute, Sea Grant, WI Department of Public Instruction, or any other body or private industry.

• Other fish and plant species are becoming popular but need significant research in how to adapt them to inside recirculating aquacultural methods and how to grow them at densities necessary to be profitable and create additional employment.

• Once new species and growing techniques are ready for commercial development, they will be retrofitted into the commercial aquaculture facility. There is potential in culturing some popular salt water marine species as well as fresh water shrimp.

• Another technological “push” for the Urban Aquaculture Center will be the full understanding and commercialization of aquaponics. The goal of the center will be to approach the condition of zero discharge of water and wastes by developing complementary systems between fish and produce. Currently there are no known profitable aquaponic systems available. The UAC will break through this barrier.

Identified Next Steps:

• Develop a Business Plan and Budgetary Production Model
• Identify Research Grants with City of Milwaukee
• Identify Attractive Site Locations
• Field Options From DCD
• Respond to State of Wisconsin’s RFP
• Let Other Agencies and Corporations Vet Initial Concepts
• Assess Engineering Readiness
• Research Necessary Permits
• Obtain PIA Certification (Permaculture Institute of Australia)
• Discuss Concept and Encourage Feedback