Soledad Tapia, National Director of Sernapesca, received the underwater robots that will help in the control of aquaculture in southern Chile at an event held at AquaSur 2024.
Photo: Sernapesca.
Chile's National Fisheries and Aquaculture Service (Sernapesca) will have two underwater robots (ROVs) to strengthen its aquaculture control work in the country's southern macro-zone. The two ROVs from the company AquaRov have been obtained thanks to the Strategic Technological Program for the Development of Ocean Aquaculture of CORFO (Production Development Corporation) and were delivered within the framework of AquaSur 2024.
"Undoubtedly, these ROVs will strengthen the control in Los Lagos, Aysén, and Magallanes, where aquaculture and small-scale aquaculture activities are developed," said Soledad Tapia, National Director of Sernapesca, at the time of the reception. "With these tools, we gain autonomy in underwater control and in often adverse conditions, since it can withstand currents of over 3 knots and depths up to 400 meters."
"To date we do not have equipment with these conditions, so we are very grateful to have these devices, a donation of 70 million pesos [EUR 66 thousand - USD 71 thousand], which becomes a milestone and will allow a robust control of salmon farming sites," she continued.
Moreover, the National Director of Sernapesca emphasized that the incorporation of the two ROVs is in addition to the training of eight professionals from the Chilean National Fisheries and Aquaculture Service who will be in charge of using this state-of-the-art equipment. Of these, one will be in Magallanes, another one in Valparaíso, two in Aysén, and the remaining four in Los Lagos.
As mentioned, the underwater robots were delivered to Sernapesca within the framework of AquaSur 2024. The aquaculture fair, which brought together the main Chilean and international suppliers to the aquaculture industry last week in Puerto Montt, not only broke its participation record in this year's edition - it registered 97% more participation than in the previous one in 2022 - but was also the scene of other events and agreements in which the Chilean National Fisheries and Aquaculture Service took part.
One of the highlights was the signing of the 'Yelcho Project' which, as reported by WeAreAquaculture, is the first public-private alliance bringing together the salmon industry, the Agriculture and Livestock Service (SAG), and Sernapesca to accelerate the implementation of vaccines for bacterial diseases in salmonids, thus avoiding the excessive use of antibiotics.
In addition, Soledad Tapia's participation in AquaSur was also an opportunity for the development of bilateral meetings to strengthen ties with other countries that have salmon farming activities. The exchange of knowledge and experiences on the use of technology to improve controls and regulatory frameworks were precisely the main topics addressed by the National Director of Sernapesca together with the Undersecretary of Fisheries and Aquaculture, Julio Salas, at the meeting with Mairi Gougeon, Minister for Rural Affairs and Islands of Scotland. Both Tapia and Salas also participated in a similar bilateral meeting with Norway, where the two countries signed a cooperation agreement on their shared challenges, focusing on food security and sustainable development.