Welcome to my professional practice
Welcome to my professional practice
Hello everyone and welcome to my website!
My name is Gaia Maria Sole Intonti and I'm an IMBRSea student from Italy. For my Professional Practice I've worked for 8 weeks in a research centre in Olhão (Portugal), investigating the very first steps of seaweed cultivation for different future purposes. Without further ado, let's dive in and discover with me the incredible world of seaweeds!
The host organization
I have carried out my two-month internship at EPPO (Estação Piloto de Piscicultura de Olhão), a governamental facility that focuses on research related to the aquaculture industry (monoculture and IMTA systems for finfish and shellfish production).
EPPO is located in the Rìa Formosa Natural Park, a reserve characterized by wetlands and barrier islands that extends along the coast of Algarve for 179 km². I had the best lunch breaks surrounded by such a fluorishing nature!
Seaweed cultivation: an emergent industry with great potential
The first forms of seaweed farming date back to the 16th century in Asian countries such as Korea and Japan. Since then, this industry has been progressively expanding because of its great potential.
You may wonder: how could we apply seaweeds in today's industry? They can be used in many different fields: in the food industry as supplements both for human and animal nutrition as well as employed as biofuel and biomaterials. Many bioactive moluecules are being found and studied for their application in the medical, pharmaceutical and cosmetic industries too. These many applications are generating a rapid growth of this sector in the blue economy, providing new job opportunities and improving the economic conditions of the countries that engage this activity.
The socio-economic aspects of seaweed cultivation are certainly remarkable, but the ecological and environmental impacts are the true worth of this practice.
By being among the main primary producers of the marine ecosystem, seaweeds represent a carbon negative crop that can be used as mitigation tool against climate change and ocean acidification.
By being ecosystem engineers, seaweeds in offshore cultivation are able to preserve and enhance biodiversity, both for habitat and species. They provide the perfect area for feeding, reproduction and nursery for many marine organisms, giving them the chance to restore their natural population and, consequentially, reduce the fishing pressure.
Finally, seaweeds can be applied for bioremediation purposes. This aspect is particularly relevant in the aquaculture industry, where seaweeds are implemented in the Integrated Multitrophic Aquaculture systems (IMTA) where they uptake the excessive nutrients, such as nitrogen, from natural or artificial water bodies, like the ones where fish are normally farmed.
If I've managed to grab your attention with this brief introduction about how cool seaweeds are, check out the next page to see how I carried out my Professional Practice!