Could fish farms be the next frontier in carbon capture? Researchers have developed a model that uses carbon capture in low-oxygen aquatic environments, such as fisheries, to reduce global CO2 levels while improving water quality and fish health, Phys.org reported.
This new model, developed by researchers at the University of Connecticut and Yale University, involves adding iron to fish farm waters, where it reacts with hydrogen sulfide to form iron sulfide. This reaction increases alkalinity and raises the water's carbonate saturation levels, which allows more CO2 to be captured from the environment. According to the study published in Nature Food, this method could capture at least 100 million metric tons of CO2 annually.
Carbon capture — extracting CO2 emissions to store them — is seen by some as an essential technology for meeting global climate goals. But traditional methods are often expensive and slow to scale. According to the authors of the study, this innovative approach could be a low-cost and efficient solution for carbon capture.
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"We are in the situation right now that to be able to sustain that 1.5° threshold, we should be removing carbon from the atmosphere," said Mojtaba Fakhraee, lead researcher of the study and assistant professor of Earth sciences at the University of Connecticut. "There is no way around this point."
Why are fish farms a prime target for this approach? Their controlled environments make it easier to manage chemical reactions. Reducing toxic sulfides is also beneficial for fish farms. Sulfide buildup is harmful to fish, leading to higher mortality rates and lower yields. This method addresses those issues while capturing carbon.
Countries with large aquaculture industries, such as China and Indonesia, could see the biggest impact. Researchers estimate that China alone could remove nearly 100 million metric tons of CO2 per year using this approach.
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Aquaculture is a rapidly growing industry. It is projected to expand by 22% by 2030, according to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. At that stage, the sector could provide 53% of all the fish we consume.
Aquaculture already contributes 5% to 7% of agriculture-related emissions, and those numbers will rise as the industry scales. Capturing carbon from the hydrogen sulfide produced by fish farms could offset most of this climate impact while improving fish health and reducing the toxic sulfide buildup that harms yields.
"This is just one possible pathway for carbon capture at a significant scale," Fakhraee explained. "The co-benefit for this specific pathway is that it would help with neutralizing the carbon emissions from fish farms resulting in a more sustainable fish industry."
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