Development of Scalable Coastal and Offshore Macroalgal Farming

Dec 26, 2022

Species: Seaweed, Sugar Kelp (Saccharina latissima)
Lead Organizers: University of Alaska Fairbanks
Location: Southwest

This project is to determine the feasibility of using offshore kelp mariculture to provide biomass for fuels.

The goals are to develop replicable scale model farms in Alaska that will demonstrate technologies capable of the cost-effective production of sugar kelp (Saccharina latissima) while integrating the entire farming process including; simplified farm installation, seed production, mechanized outplanting and harvest, and reseeding.

Principal Investigator / Partners:

Michael Stekoll, University of Alaska Fairbanks
University of Connecticut
Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution
Marine Biological Laboratory
Cliff Goudey & Associates
Alaska Fisheries Development Foundation
GreenWave
Blue Evolution

Project Term: 2018-2023 (still ongoing)
Funding: $3,500,000, US Department of Energy, Advanced Research Projects Agency–Energy (ARPA-e)
Contact Email: msstekoll@alaska.edu