Aquaponics Production 100 Hours Certificate Course

There are 10 lessons in this course:

1. Introduction
   • What is aquaponics
   • History of aquaponics
   • Why aquaponics
   • World food
   • Urban farming
   • Cost benefit analysis
   • Is aquaponics organic
   • The aquaponics system
   • Can it be used with salt water
   • Types of Systems:constant flow closed reciprocating, open, deep water, floating raft
   • Outdoor or indoor systems
   • Barrel ponics, wick, NFT, etc
   • Advantages and disadvantages of aquaponics
   • Scale of operation
2. Aquaponic System Options
   • Recirculating systems
   • Non recirculating (open loop systems or micropnics)
   • Components of commercial fish rearing systems
   • Aquaponic sub systems
   • Deep water culture (DWC)
   • Intermittent flow (Ebb and flow)
   • Nutrient film technique (NFT)
   • Gravel bed systems
   • Barrel ponics systems
   • Equipment: commercial and backyard
   • System components
   • Tanks
   • Aeration devices
   • Solids removal: clarifiers, solids tanks, filters,screens
   • Biofilters
   • Sump and pH adjustment tank
   • Water heaters and chillers
   • Greenhouse houses and fish rearingfacilities
   • Alarm and back up systems
   • Hydroponic grow beds and types of media
   • Maintenance, water monitoring and adjustment
   • Organic vs non organic
   • Combining worms with growing beds
3. The Science of Animal and Plant Growth
   • Plant growth factors
   • How plants grow
   • Plant structure: roots, stems, leaves, reproductive parts
   • Biochemistry and aquaponics
   • Biochemical processes in a cell
   • Photosynthesis
   • Mechanisms of nutrient uptake
   • Plant nutrients
   • Role of pH in plant growth
   • Animal science
   • Bony fish (Osteichthyes) and their biology
   • Crustaceans: crabs, lobsters, shrimp and prawns
4. Nutrition and Controlling Growth
   • Water soluble chemical compounds: ions
   • Less water soluble chemicals
   • Complex chemical compounds
   • Understanding nutrient formulae
   • Hydroponic nutrient formulae
   • Atoms, elements and componds
   • How are chemical names written
   • What does a plant need
   • Calculating formulae
   • Mixing nutrients
   • Case study
   • Symptoms of nutrient deficiency
   • Nutrients in aquaponics
   • Variables in aquaponics: conductivity, ph control, oxygenation, beneficial bacteria in aquaponics
5. Selecting and Managing Animal Production; Fish and Crustaceans
   • Choosing what to farm
   • Climate
   • Water
   • Finance
   • Scale of operation
   • Other resources
   • Market
   • Availability of animals
   • Risk considerations
   • Overview of main species to grow: in Asia, South Africa, Australia, U.K., Europe, North America, South America
   • Trout: Rainbow, Brown
   • Bass
   • Tilapia
   • Catfish
   • Barramundi
   • Carp
   • Mullet
   • Sunfish
   • Eels
   • Marron
   • Other species: ornamental fish, crustaceans and molluscs, lgae
   • Sourcing fish and crustaceans
   • Fish food
   • Which type of fish food to use: pellets, live food, daphnia, brine shrimp, tubifex worms, earthworms, oil meals
   • Other food
   • Fish food production: beef heartlegumes, seafood and vegetable mix,
   • Earthworms: setting up, adding worms
   • Compost: understanding, making, conditions for compost production
   • Fish health
   • Common pests and diseasesin aquaponics
   • Penaeid shrimp diseases
   • Fish diseases
   • Salinity and system health
6. Setting up an Aquaculture System
   • Choosing the right sized system
   • Selecting the right components
   • Setting up the system
   • Getting started
   • Threats to the system
   • Using a greenhouse
   • Greenhouses: passive systems, active systems
   • Active solaqr heating
   • Greenhouse management
   • Controlling the growing environment
   • Light control
   • Air temperature control
   • Root temperature control
   • Relative humidity and vapour pressure deficit
   • Controlling humidity
   • Carbon dioxide and oxygen
   • Computer controls
7. Aquaponic Plant Culture
   • Selecting media for aquaponic plant culture
   • Types of media Growing seedlings
   • Seed sources
   • Sowing seed
   • Seed propagating media
   • Sowing seed direct
   • Vegetables in aquaponics
   • Herbs
   • Successional planting
   • Flow charting a crop
   • Controlling plant growth: stopping, spacing, disbudding, trimming, training
   • Pollination
   • Pest, disease and other crop problems: overview, identification
   • Pest, disease and disorder control in aquaponics
8. Applications and Opportunities
   • Aquaponics for profit
   • Economic thresholds
   • Harvest and post harvest management of fish
   • Harvest and post harvest management of vegetables and herbs
   • Harvested crop physiology: fruit ripening, respiration, when to harvesy
   • How to prepare salad mixes from harvested vegetables: chlorine levels in water for washing produce, preventing bruising and rots, packaging
   • CA and MA storage
   • Chilling damage and storage temperature
   • Harvesting and grading vegetables
   • Fruit grading systems
   • Marketing
9. Managing an Aquaponics Venture - including a PBL
   • Case study: University of the Virgin Islands system
   • Case study: North Carolina State University system
   • Case study: Speraneo system
   • What is an aquaponic trial?
   • Running an aquaponic trial
   • Research methodology
   • PBL Project: Create and present a plan with specific strategies for improving the crop production of an aquaponics system in terms of amount and quality of produce harvested based on a clear understanding of the system’s requirements and its location (greenhouse or open air; temperate, subtropical, or tropical climate).
10. Troubleshooting
    • Water supply problems
    • pH problems
    • Algae growth
    • Dirty, cloudy water
    • Water imbalances; high levels of ammonia or nitrite
    • Imbalances in gases
    • Fish troubleshooting
    • Controlling salinity and nutrients without damaging fish
    • Plant troubleshooting
    • Diseases
    • Pythium in aquaponics
    • Pests
    • Environmental physiological disorders
    • Nutrition problems in aquaponics
    • Deficiency symptoms
    • Correcting nutrient problems in aquaponics
    • Fruit set management: pollinationfloral initiation, fruit growth
    • Flower and fruit development problems
    • Fish eating plant roots
    • Power losses
    • Clogging with sediment
    • Fish to plant imbalances
    • Pathogenic contamination issues

      This course is taught by:

      Dr. Mark C. Mifsud
      Phd (Univeristy of Bath)., B.Ed (Hons.) Uni of Malta, P.G.Dip.Env.Mgt., M.Sc., PGCEM, Pg.Cert.EfS., Dip.Eco.Des., Dip.Env.Aud.,
      MiBiol, MIEEM, MiEnvSc, CBiol, CEnv, CSci.(Teach), AMPS, ARPS, PhD.

      Mark is a Chartered Biologist, a Chartered Environmental Scientist, a Chartered Science Teacher, a Certified Wildlife Photographer and a Prince II Certified Practitioner with a wide range of experience in Environmental Sciences,Environmental Education and Sustainable Development. Mark has drafted plans for nature projects, reviewed EIAs and advised on ODZ applications within MEPA. He has more than 20 years’ experience in a variety of different settings in relation to the environment. Mark is currently involved in environmental communication, teaching and mentoring,academic refereeing and as a partner in a number of international projects. Mark has been entrusted as a member on various national and international boards. He is presently the coordinator of the Masters in Education for Sustainable Development at the University of Malta, and also lectures at the University of Ca Foscari Venice, Italy, at the Universityof Yaounde, Cameroon and at NCU and SNHU in the US.