Fish aquaculture is a thriving economic sector in Greece, which is expected to double its size until 2030 by occupying a substantial part of the country’s extended coastline. Aquaculture-related pressures to the natural coastal habitats have been acknowledged and investigated, but few actions have been proposed towards their mitigation, apart from the enforcement of restrictive regulations. Sponges emerge as ideal candidates for integrated aquaculture in fish farms, since they harbour high biotechnological potential apart from their remediation capacity. Fish aquaculture is a major contributor to blue growth worldwide, yet induces a series of pressures to the coastal marine environment. Living sponges are ideal candidates to mitigate organic pollution, owing to their innate capacity for active seawater filtering.
SPINAQUA (“Sponges in integrated aquaculture systems: Towards the delivery of better seawater quality and marine products of high added-value”) is a multidisciplinary research project investigating the potential of sponge cultivation in proximity to fish aquaculture for bioremediation and bioproduction purposes. To this end, it adopts an integrated approach comprising: (a) an extended survey of existing sponge habitats, (b) the setup of an experimental open-sea cultivation of selected sponges, as well as (c) the evaluation of their biotechnological potential in the laboratory. Through the adoption of state-of-the-art research methodologies, it aspires to provide a sound baseline to support the development of future bioremediation applications in an efficient, productive and environmentally sustainable manner. In the long run, it will help deliver a competitive advantage to Greek aquaculture enterprises and “cleaner” seas to the people.
SPINAQUA 1st Dive
The first field expedition for the SPINAQUA project took place on 12 December 2019 by the SPINAQUA diving team (Thanos Dailianis, Julius Glampedakis, Emmanouela Vernadou) in Akrotiri Peninsula (Chania, Crete). This dive marked the initiation of WP2 and aimed at the development and evaluation of the working protocol for the…
28-Oct 2019 Ocean4Biotech COST
SPINAQUA coordinator participated in the kickoff meeting of Ocean4Biotech COST action (EU2020-funded project), which was held in Brussels on 28 October 2019. The overall aim of Ocean4Biotech is to bring together experts in the field of marine biotechnology, to provide a platform for sharing experience, knowledge and technologies, and to…
This project has received funding from the Hellenic Foundation for Research and Innovation (HFRI) and the General Secretariat for Research and Technology (GSRT), under the “1st Call for H.F.R.I. Research Projects for the support of Post-doctoral Researchers – The project was submitted in the field of Natural Sciences (Project ID: 239)