New Norwegian project to assess aquaculture impacts at water area level

Akvaplan-niva AS has launched the introductory film for the MetoMilo project, which will provide tools to determine how aquaculture affects the natural environment along the coast and in the ocean, and to identify particularly impacted "hotspots."

The current monitoring programs used in Norway to assess the chemical and biological state of the environment are less suitable for identifying which industry or activity is responsible for different types of impacts, and to what extent.

For this reason, researchers aim to identify so-called "tracers", which can be used individually or in combination to determine the source of an impact.

One application of this method is to delineate the zones of influence of a fish farm or to identify areas where multiple fish farms have overlapping impact zones, or where they overlap with other activities.

Thanks to the MetoMilo project, it will be possible to carry out spatial planning, adapt monitoring programs, assess risks in marine ecosystems, and identify the causes of poor environmental status in different water bodies.

Akvaplan-niva is also collaborating on the Ocean Green project, which aims to restore kelp forests along Norway’s northern coast and use innovative seabed‑harvesting technology to remove large numbers of sea urchins, a major cause of kelp forest loss.