Aquaponics provides many benefits over traditional agriculture methods. Check out the top benefits below!
1. Water Efficient
Aquaponics is extremely water efficient, with 95% of the water put in being used. In comparison, aquaponics uses 1/10 the amount of water that traditional soil-based agriculture uses. This is because aquaponics is a closed, circulating system where the water never needs to be completely replaced. Therefore, the water loss is minimal due to evaporation and the water used up by the plants.
2. Organic Ecosystem
Aquaponics creates an organic ecosystem, where no chemicals or fertilizers are needed. In the circulating system, the waste from the fish provides valuable nutrients to the plants. As well, the plants use up these nutrients and filter the water to avoid a toxic buildup of nutrients. The closed system allows nutrients to be balanced naturally by fish and plants.
3. Low Maintenance
An aquaponics system basically acts as its own little ecosystem. Therefore, the only thing you have to do is feed the fish everyday! There is no need to clean or change the water in the tank and no need to add chemicals or fertilizers to the system. Aquaponics can be used as a less time consuming method for producing your own food!
4. Space Efficient
Aquaponic systems can be adapted to fit any size space you have available. Plants can be grown vertically or horizontally and the plants can be stacked on top of the fish tank or placed next to it. Whatever your needs are, you can find a design to fit them. As well, aquaponics can provide an immense amount of food in a small area. One acre of aquaponics can produce 50,000 pounds of tilapia and 100,000 pounds of vegetables per year while a single grass-fed cow requires 8 acres of grassland.
5. Sustainable
Aquaponics is an extremely sustainable way to produce food. As explained above, it is extremely water efficient. As well, there is no need for soil in the system making it suitable for dry areas without much water and places without nutrient rich soils. There is also little waste produced in the system. Any waste that is produced could be used as a fertilizer for soil-based agriculture, put in a compost pile, and for unharvested plants specifically, fed to the fish. Another positive is that these systems don’t produce harmful emissions. In comparison, typical farming creates carbon dioxide from farming equipment using petroleum, methane from cattle, and nitrous oxide from over-fertilizing.
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