Murcia, Spain explores new agricultural production systems: Aquaponics

The Government of the Region of Murcia promotes aquaponics as an engine for growth and an alternative to traditional farming. The objective is to relaunch agricultural activity, create jobs and stabilize the population, mainly young people, with the creation of small farms The regional government, through the Torre Pacheco CIFEA, is promoting the development and implementation of aquaponics as a system that, due to its qualities, can be a driving force in depressed areas with water scarcity, as it optimizes resources and can promote ecotourism and rural tourism. The Council of Water, Agriculture, Livestock, Fisheries and Environment, to which the Torre Pacheco CIFEA belongs, carries out trials with this novel aquaponics technique, which consists of the production of plants in three hydroponic systems: circulating water (NFT), water bed and substrate, while fish are produced for food; in this case, tilapia (Oreochromis sp.), with the aim of marketing both products. The objective of ...