Why Are Aquaponics Systems Important For The Environment?
Aquaponics systems provide many environmental benefits. They can help reduce carbon dioxide emissions, preserve water usage and curb the use of pesticides. But there’s more to it than just those perks. Let us tell you some other reasons why aquaponics gardening is essential for our environment and your gardeners.
But first, let’s understand what aquaponics systems are?
Aquaponics systems are most commonly used to grow fresh vegetables and fish. These are a sustainable system that not only produces food but can also be used to recycle wastewater from the household into an ecosystem that benefits everyone.
Why You Should Consider Aquaponics Systems
- The United States Geological Survey found that 42% of freshwater withdrawals are used for irrigation. This has led many drought-stricken countries to reassess their water consumption practices.
- About 1 million people are going hungry every day, and many more are threatened with the scarcity of water resources for drinking or irrigation purposes.
- The global population is increasing. Estimates for 2050 range from 8-10 billion people which will have serious implications in terms of food scarcity.
- The world population is increasing, so is the global demand for food.
- One-third of all arable land has been lost to erosion or pollution in just over 40 years.
- Harmful chemicals and fertilizers are used for soil irrigation, a process of growing plants.
We need new ways to find solutions that will work in tandem with nature instead. So, to combat all these threats, aquaponics comes across as the most viable option.
We will now discuss why aquaponics systems are important for the environment in detail. This would include how they are beneficial and what other benefits this system has on humankind. For example, using less water saves energy which in turn reduces greenhouse gas emissions.
Plus, there’s no need to release excess nutrients back into our waterways because it all goes back into your aquaponics garden or farm through composting or irrigation instead. Find out more about this revolutionary farming method by reading on…
6 Ways Aquaponics Systems are the Best Bet for the Environment
Aquaponics systems are a great investment for anyone who wants to help protect our environment.
1. Aquaponics systems save water.
Water is a vital element of life, but it’s also limited. Aquaponics is a great way to grow plants hydroponically without the need for enough water. The fish waste provides vital nutrients carried by water recirculating from the tank to plant roots on the growing beds. All while requiring minimal amounts of fresh water. This system is good for the environment because there’s no loss in irrigation or runoff like you would experience with traditional methods.
According to the University of Gothenburg, an aquaponic system is capable of achieving a water reuse efficiency rate up near 95% or higher. This process allows you not only to use less than 100 litres per kilogram for fish but also to maintain quality throughout continuous usage as well. It’s also one of the many reasons these systems can be so sustainable and cost-effective compared with commercial farming alternatives.
2. Aquaponics systems help overcome soil challenges.
The world is rapidly growing, and this poses a wide range of new challenges on soil irrigation. For example, a recent study found that agricultural productivity has been increasing in the past few decades primarily due to higher cropping intensity rather than expanding land area.
Unfortunately, the arable soil doesn’t offer what plant life needs in many locations. Soils must have both microbiology and be just right with loam and clay organic matter consistency. It also requires enough human involvement, compositing tiling, adding nutrients and applying frequency.
On the other hand, aquaponics plants don’t have to bore through the soil like traditional gardens; they get all their nutrients and water from the fish tank. The system is completely sustainable, so we don’t harm our planet with yet another disposable consumable item that will perhaps end up in a landfill after one use. Aquaponic systems are able to grow food directly without relying on scarce resources like land.
3. Growing in places that otherwise don’t grow.
Farming on a slab of concrete may seem like an impossible feat, but it’s not as difficult to do in some cases. For example, if the soil has high arsenic and/or heavy metals levels, nothing would grow there unless you add tons of irrigable soil to cultivate. Aquaponics is an excellent way to make use of any available space, including soil-free locations.
Aquaculture systems are environmentally sound because they do not require the earth as their starting point such as conventional farming does. Aquaponics farming does not require farmland with fertile soil. Aquaculture can be done in any type of terrain, including hard-to cultivate areas like gravel or rocky ground that are otherwise useless for conventional agriculture. Instead, simply providing it with nutrients through water saturation techniques works perfectly well.
4. Aquaponics systems produce Zero waste.
Aquaponics farming is a clean and sustainable way to produce food without the need for synthetic fertilizers or pesticides. All solids collected from fish tanks can be added back into your compost pile in an aquaponics system. Hence, there’s no wasted material that would otherwise go bad in nature’s recycling bin. You also don’t have any water needs discharged when using this type of gardening method either. The only thing drained off after harvest time is plant pitchers full of fresh veggies ready for consumption by you or animals alike.
5. Aquaponics systems reduce food miles.
The transportation of our food is a complicated process that consumes immense amounts of oil, gas and pollution. The majority, if not all store-bought tilapia, comes from China; bass is fished across multiple countries, including Chile, where vegetables like lettuce can also be found on shelves. Transporting these ingredients long distances takes more hands touching them with refrigeration needed at various locations worldwide.
Aquaponics systems, however, is an innovative type of agriculture that uses the least amount of resources while providing people with high-quality food in their own backyards or schools and communities nearby where they live. Aquaponic systems can be built anywhere there’s an available build site (even if it’s not physically on soil). It takes very little land space compared to other traditional growing methods and does away with chemical fertilizers harmful to humans and animals alike.
6. Aquaponics systems use no chemical fertilizer.
Aquaponics is a sustainable way to grow food in the absence of traditional fertilizers. The byproducts from fish are used as nutrients for plants and animals. This system offers an environmentally friendly alternative because it doesn’t rely on chemical substances like those used for soil cultivation elsewhere. Instead, it relies heavily upon natural resources such as water sources and wastes from organisms living within the ecosystem.
Aquaponics is a sustainable and eco-friendly way to feed the world. It also produces many nutrients that plants need without chemicals which makes us feel better about what we’re eating since all those harmful fertilizers can be bad for our health and be environmentally unfriendly.
Aquaponics systems don’t require any of these resources because they mimic natural ecosystems where organic matter cycles occur over time. So you get more than just vegetables from your garden or farm; instead, there will always seem like new things popping up.
Other Benefits Of Aquaponics Systems
- Aquaponics is a method to grow healthy food while also producing fish and vegetables.
- Aquaponics is a great system for growing food all year round. It regulates the temperature as per what you’re cultivating, using aquaponics greenhouses that help keep it at an optimum level with natural sunlight or artificial light sources.
- Aquaponics helps grow your own food without having the hassle of weeding. The plants never need soil, so they’re less likely bothersome when it comes time for cleanup duty.
- Aquaponics systems are a great way to grow plants because they have access to 100% natural nutrients 24 hours per day.
- Food security and food independence are becoming more important in our society. One way to live an alternative lifestyle is through aquaponics, which provides you with both the means of sustenance as well as hands-on experience growing your own vegetables on-site at home or work.
- Aquaponics is an innovative way to grow your own organic food and generate income. It can help landless or poor people secure their daily meals, while at the same time providing them with a sustainable source of living that will last years.
- Aquaponics farming is a sustainable way to grow the produce, and the results are always fresh.
- Aquaponics is a more natural way to grow produce that’s free of chemicals.
Conclusion
Although the word “aquaponics” may sound like something out of a sci-fi novel, this revolutionary water and plant cultivation system is already being utilized by many gardeners. Aquaponic systems are the perfect solution to address all of these environmental problems, and it’s easy to see why. The system is designed so that fish waste fertilizes plants while the plants filter water for the fish. This closed-loop ecosystem reduces our reliance on fossil fuels or chemical pesticides to grow food. No wonder NASA called aquaponics systems “the future of sustainable farming.