The Seaweed Research Group collaborates with different government and community organisations on projects across Australia and the Asia-Pacific.
Current
Transforming women's seaweed businesses into nature-based solutions for Fiji, Samoa, and Kiribati
2024 - 2027
Seaweed aquaculture is widely recognised as having strong potential for climate change mitigation and adaptation activities. In the Pacific, women often manage the seaweed farming businesses. Though the scale of operations in Fiji, Samoa and Kiribati is relatively small, significant growth is possible through the establishment of additional village-based enterprises.
The seaweed aquaculture sector of these countries can be expanded by offering technical solutions to existing production constraints as well as by diversifying the market for existing seaweed products. Specifically, nature-based solutions (NbS) can offer meaningful technology solutions to drive the adoption of sustainable aquaculture practices across the Pacific.
The project will begin by mapping the existing seaweed supply chains and identifying and evaluating production and processing interventions for the key seaweed species. Specifically, the Life Cycle Analysis of energy (carbon) and nutrients (nitrogen/phosphorus) involved in the supply chain will capture the flow of both raw material used and waste products created. A natural capital accounting approach will be used to evaluate the benefits and impacts of nature-based financing.
Next, the project will focus on enhancing entrepreneurship skills and practices by delivering business training and peer-to-peer learning opportunities. The project team will also collaborate with private sector entities to support the development of innovative product prototypes and evaluate their potential marketability.
Finally, the project will synthesise lessons learned. The focus will be on culturally rigorous knowledge sharing and developing frameworks and approaches to scaling up both production capacity and potential market bases for the domestic seaweed aquaculture sectors of these three countries.
Project team: Prof. Nick Paul, Dr Saskia de Klerk, Dr Libby Swanepoel, Dr Silva Larson, Dr Savindi Caldera and Nicole Dare from UniSC
Partners: Fiji National University (FNU), Ministry of Fisheries (MoF) Fiji, Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries (MAF) Samoa and Ministry of Fisheries and Marine Resources Development (MFMRD) Kiribati
Funding: $ 1,822,608
Completed
Seaweed for Bio-remediation at Proserpine Prawn Farm
2021 - 2023
At Tassal's Proserpine Prawn Farm, a pioneering collaboration with the Seaweed Research Group from the University of the Sunshine Coast, funded by the Fisheries Research and Development Corporation (FRDC), has led to a trans formative $1 million, two-year project.
By harnessing the natural nutrient uptake abilities of three green seaweed varieties—Cladophora, Chaetomorpha, and Ulva—found onsite, the project converted seven settlement ponds into 'Seaweed Farms'. The inaugural harvest of 2,500 tonnes of seaweed in 2021-22 not only enhanced water quality but also unveiled a promising new commercial opportunity for the farm, with potential product innovations on the horizon.
Project team: Prof. Nick Paul, Dr Alexandra Campbell, Maddy Smith, Ms Tasmin Steele, Nicole Dare and Enrique de Paz from UniSC
Partners: Tassal Prawn Farm
Funding: : $ 1,000,000
Fisheries Research and Development Corporation (FRDC)
Seaweed production as a nutrient offset for Moreton Bay
2020 - 2022
Moreton Bay is a 1,500 km-square urbanised estuary adjacent to one of the fastest growing regions in Australia. Rapid population growth creates a challenge for wastewater utilities to deal with the increase in nutrient loads. This includes the single largest asset of Urban Utilities, the Luggage Point Sewage Treatment Plant, at the mouth of the Brisbane River that discharges into the bay. At the same time, on the eastern side of Moreton Bay, the Queensland rock oyster industry faces reduced productivity due to environmental change, disease and algal blooms, and challenges associated with the business risks presented by monoculture.
Here, communities on Minjerribah (North Stradbroke Island) are also investigating new opportunities during their transition away from sand mining, and Quandamooka Yoolooburrabee Aboriginal Corporation (QYAC) has Native Title on a large tract of the Moreton Bay Marine Park.
Seaweed production offers a unique and timely solution to address some of the economic, environmental, and social challenges in Moreton Bay. Seaweed farming is a “no-feed” form of aquaculture; it is zero waste and compatible with oyster farming and marine park zoning. Seaweeds grow quickly and strip nutrients from the water column, draw down carbon dioxide and can remove pollutants. Because of this, Urban Utilities and USC are evaluating how much nutrient can be extracted from the bay as an offset for their discharge licenses to avoid substantial capital investment in sewage treatment whilst delivering better environmental outcomes for each dollar spent.
Project team: Prof. Nicholas Paul, Dr Alexandra Campbell, Mrs Ana Wegner, Nicole Dare from UniSC
Partners: Queensland Urban Utilities (QUU), Moreton Bay Rock Oysters
Funding: : $ 370,000
Fisheries Research and Development Corporation (FRDC)
Harnessing seaweed genes to mitigate methane emissions from livestock
2020 - 2022
Novel climate solutions for food production are crucial as agriculture is responsible for 25% of global greenhouse gas emissions. This project aims to understand the molecular components of bioactive natural products found in a seaweed that, when fed to cattle and sheep, cuts out methane emissions. The project is applying -omic techniques to determine the key genes involved and the ecological factors that influence their expression across the seaweed life cycle.
The findings are providing a platform to harness the full potential of seaweed as a natural additive in livestock feeds.
Asparagopsis is a unique genus of red seaweed that produces natural compounds which suppress methane production in livestock. The intention is to identify the genetic and ecological mechanisms that maximise compound production. This will fast-track the aquaculture development of the seaweed as a viable economic and ecological solution to meet demand from the agriculture industry.
Project team: Prof. Scott Cummins, Prof. Nick Paul, Dr Min Zhao, Dr Alexandra Campbell and Dr Eiichi Shoguchi
Partners: Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology
Funding: : $ 425,766
Australian Research Council (ARC) Discovery project
Improving nutrition through women's and men's engagement across the seaweed food chain in Kiribati and Samoa
2020 - 2023
This project aims to develop seaweed aquaculture and consumption for long term health, income and wellbeing in
coastal communities of Kiribati and Samoa. Nutrition-sensitive agriculture ensures the sustainable production of nutritious,
affordable and safe foods to meet the dietary requirements of populations. Through the sustainable use of natural resources,
there is an opportunity to transform seaweed fisheries into an industry with short supply chains and village-based processing of products for family consumption.
By developing and evaluating gender-inclusive activities in these two Pacific countries, this project is to shift the focus of seaweed production from an export-only commodity to one that provides direct benefits to the health and wellbeing of
local communities, as well as to increase income opportunities for women. The project partners are the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries in Samoa and the Ministry of Fisheries and Marine Resource Development in Kiribati.
Project team: Dr Libby Swanepoel,Courtney Anderson, Prof. Nicholas Paul , Dr Silva Larson, Ulusapeti Tiitii, Losan Madar, Esmay Tanielu and Barbara Pamphilon
Partners: Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries (MAF) Samoa and Ministry of Fisheries and Marine Resources Development (MFMRD) Kiribati
Funding: : $ 249,827
Australian Centre for International Agriculture Research (ACIAR)
Development of an economic model that incorporates carbon and nitrogen offsets in Australian seaweed and oyster aquaculture industries
2020 - 2022
This project works with industry partner NineSquared to further develop an economic feasibility model to support the
utilisation of seaweed and shellfish production for environmental offsets in South East Queensland. The aims are to conduct a high-level offset market assessment for seaweed and shellfish aquaculture utilising biological data on seaweeds and oysters and engaged with industry and government on the development of economic decision-making tools for environmental offsets. It builds upon previous collaborative work including a review of government legislation and policy
requirements for environmental offsets in response to pollutant discharge into the environment.
Carbon and Nitrogen Marine Offset Synergies in Australia's Regulatory Framework
Project team: Prof. Nick Paul, Rachael A Marshall and Tom Frost
Partners: NineSquared
Funding: : $ 29,016
AusIndustry
Improving seaweed production and processing opportunities in Indonesia
2016 - 2021
Indonesia is the world’s second-largest producer of seaweeds.
Seaweed aquaculture is one of the few available income-generating opportunities for coastal communities in eastern
Indonesia, with an estimated 120,000 smallholding seaweed
farmers. However, the industry has identified problems with
seaweed quality, processing procedures and utilisation of waste streams from processing. The causes of variation in product quality and production between farming sites, and across seasons, as well as problems with the colour and the longer-term deterioration in gel strength, are currently unknown.
The overall aim of the project is to provide the scientific basis to transform and modernise the Indonesian seaweed industry by taking a ‘whole-of-value-chain’ approach to solve the key
production constraints and develop multiple product opportunities. The project is developing approaches to create
innovative seaweed-based products of improved quality, thus
diversifying the markets into which seaweed can be sold.
Diversification of market opportunities brings direct benefits to
coastal communities, particularly in eastern Indonesia, by raising and stabilising incomes, and increasing revenue streams.
Report: Improving seaweed production and processing opportunities in Indonesia
Biochemical Database and Product Sheets for Seaweeds from Fiji, Samoa and Kiribati
Project team: Prof. Nicholas Paul, Dr Mike Rimmer, Dr Silva Larson, Dr Libby Swanepoel, Dr Agus Heri Purnomo, Dr Petrus R Pong-Masak, Dr Mardiana E Fachry, Dr I Lapong and Ian Tuart and Ana Wegner from UniSC
Partners: Agency for Marine and Fisheries Research and Development, Centre for Seaweed Culture Research and Development, Hasanuddin University, Research Centre for Marine and Fisheries Product Processing and Biotechnology
Funding: : $ 1,600,000
Australian Centre for International Agriculture Research (ACIAR)
