Fishery-solar co-existence set for expansion; private operators form association hoping to foster social communication

Recently, the issue of fishery-solar co-existence has sparked widespread discussion due to land leasing and ecological concerns. On the 28th, the Ocean Science and Technology Inter-University Joint Forum also focused on the green energy circular economy, inviting scholars to share research on fishery-solar co-existence and microalgae applications. The research found that whether fishery-solar co-existence has a niche depends on the fish species being farmed. The shading effect of solar panels benefits the growth of some fish species, but it must be supplemented with more aquaculture pond management work. Outside the forum, solar power operators, scholars and fish farmers also established the "Taiwan Smart Fishery-Solar Association," hoping to serve as a bridge between fish farmers, solar power operators and academia, using green energy resources to drive the upgrading of domestic aquaculture.

Chen Che-chun, Associate Professor of the Department of Aquatic Biosciences at National Chiayi University, explained that the dilemma of the solar industry lies in its high land demand and the need for a massive sunlight area to be cost-effective. Abroad, installations are mostly set up in unproductive areas, while domestically, fish ponds for species that do not require long sunlight hours can be utilized, using the facility-based aquaculture environment created by installing solar panels to improve water quality management and disease prevention efficiency.

Currently, there are several ways to combine solar facilities with aquaculture: one is water-surface solar facilities, another is pillar-type installations that directly use solar panels as aquaculture pond roofs, and another is indoor aquaculture ponds with solar panels attached on top. Regarding water-surface facilities, Chen Che-chun conducted aquaculture experiments in years 106 and 107 (ROC calendar) using floating raft-type water-surface facilities to simulate solar panels shading 40% of the water surface area, targeting tilapia, sea bass, milkfish and white shrimp. The research found that the greatest impacts were on dissolved oxygen levels and temperature. Dissolved oxygen levels can be improved through equipment such as paddle wheel aerators, and shading can lower pond temperatures, which benefits fish growth. However, with water-surface solar facilities, management must overcome issues such as harvest collection, fish pond maintenance operations, and removal of organisms attached to floats. In shellfish aquaculture that relies on filtering algae and bacteria from the pond, if solar panels completely cover the pond surface, it would hinder algae photosynthesis and affect shellfish growth.

Chen Che-chun believes that whether pillar-type installations or solar panels added on top of aquaculture ponds, both help with summer heat insulation and winter warmth retention in aquaculture farms, and can help regulate aquaculture production timing and increase productivity. Therefore, achieving the Council of Agriculture's target of 70% or more production per unit area under solar panels is not difficult. Some domestic operators have seen the facility results and plan to invest in a second site this year.

However, since domestic fish farmers are mostly accustomed to operating large-area ponds, the initial cost of facility-based upgrades is relatively high, which in turn affects fish farmers' willingness to invest. In addition, some fish farmers have concerns about potential pollution problems from solar installations. Therefore, Chen Che-chun stated that this year he will continue to cooperate with several domestic fish farmers who have installed solar panels, collect pond data, and establish feeding recommendations for different stocked species under solar facilities, so that fish farmers have a reference basis.

A founding member of the "Taiwan Smart Fishery-Solar Association" and a fish farmer surnamed Huang stated that in recent years, the challenges of climate change have made aquaculture management more difficult, but some fish farmers' operating scale is not sufficient to have the capital for facility upgrades. Therefore, if green energy industry funding can be injected to enhance facilities and management efficiency, it would be a win-win situation for both aquaculture and green energy development. However, at the current stage, because there are no consistent requirements and regulations for green energy operators, operators who genuinely want to invest are excluded, and fish farmers and environmental conservationists also have some misunderstandings about the green energy industry. Therefore, it is hoped that the association can become a bridge between the two sides, assist communication, and enable aquaculture to develop steadily and sustainably on the basis of green energy.