New hatchery able to produce two million cod
BAY
ROBERTS -- Construction has begun on a $2.5-million cod hatchery in Bay
Roberts that its proponent says will have the capacity to produce two
million juvenile cod -- more than any other hatchery in the world.
The hatchery is a project of Newfoundland Aqua Ventures Ltd. and the
Newfoundland and Labrador Development Corp., operating under the company
name Northern Cod Ventures Ltd.
George Parsons, general manager of Newfoundland Aqua Ventures and the chief
financial officer of Northern Cod Ventures, said Aqua Ventures has been
developing the technology necessary to produce juvenile cod on a commercial
basis.
That work, he said, has been successful, as shown by the 75,000 juvenile cod
produced at the Ocean Sciences Centre this year.
"The time is now right for the establishment of a commercial-scale cod
hatchery," he said.
"The facility will have the capacity to produce two million juvenile
cod," he said.
"Presently, no facility in the world has been able to accomplish this.
Norway is close to overcoming the technical challenges, but they are not yet
there."
The cod will remain at the Bay Roberts hatchery until they reach 10 grams.
They will then be released into net pens in an ice-free harbour in the
spring.
The 13,500-square-foot hatchery will be substantially different than the one
proposed when the project was announced nearly two years ago.
Originally, the complex was to consist of a number of outdoor tanks, but
they will now be located under a single roof. They include brood stock, a
nursery, larval and incubation tanks.
(From Aquaculture Info List, e-mail: dave.conley@sympatico.ca)