Typically recirculating (closed) aquatic production systems have higher capital and operating costs than many of the extensive systems such as cage culture in natural waters and raceway and/or pond culture systems. However, when the control provided by recirculating systems and the benefits this environmental control provides in terms of marketing, waste control, product quality, product availability, and other factors are considered-- then recirculating systems become much more attractive. Thus, this text is designed primarily for recirculating systems, which the authors feel will be the systems of choice for most new aquaculture ventures. Much of the information provided in this text does, however, also apply to open, semi-closed, and closed systems in terms of tank design, hydraulics, fish management, water quality, etc. The objectives of this text are the practical application of aquacultural engineering and how to design, construct, and manage an aquatic production system. It provides the reader with essential information necessary to get started in aquaculture production and it emphasizes practical information rather than in-depth theoretical discussions. It does not provide the reader with information on genetics, basic biology, marketing, and all of the other areas important to development of a successful aquaculture operation. Many of these topics are touched on in the text, but are presented only in sufficient detail to allow the reader to understand the relationship of each of these aspects to production of fish. There is no attempt to present in-depth discussions of these topics. Rather the object is to provide sufficient information so the reader can: 1) look at a system and make a good judgment as to how well the systems will operate, 2) work with a systems designer to develop an aquatic production system of your own, and 3) know what to look for when shopping for aquacultural production systems.
Michael B. Timmons, Ph.D. Dr. Timmons received his B.S. in Agricultural Engineering from the Ohio State University, his M.S. in Agricultural Engineering from the University of Hawaii, and his Ph.D. from Cornell University. Dr. Timmons has worked in aquacultural engineering for 25 years as a researcher, teacher, and extension specialist. He has published widely and has served as primary editor on many of the Aquacultural Engineering Society meeting proceedings and for the series of bi-annual meetings sponsored by Virginia Tech on Water Recirculation Systems. He was one of the founders of the Aquacultural Engineering Society and has served in several officer positions including President. Dr. Timmons was a J. Thomas Clark Professorship of Entrepreneurship and Personal Enterprise (1999-2006) at Cornell University where he is still a professor in the Department of Biological and Environmental Engineering. Dr. Timmons has been a principal investor (he put his house on the line!) in the design, construction, and operation of a commercial recirculating tilapia farm (~500 tons per year of production) and thus provides the viewpoint of a commercial aquaculturist in addition to his experience as a researcher and extension specialist. You can contact Dr. Timmons by email, mbt3@cornell.edu.
James M. Ebeling, Ph.D. Dr. Ebeling has a B.S. and M.S. in physics from Albion College in Albion, Michigan and Washington State University in Pullman, Washington, respectively. He has a second M.S. in agricultural engineering from Washington State University and has three years of formal training at the University of California, Davis in aquacultural engineering. He obtained his Ph.D. in Biological Resources Engineering from the University of Maryland, College Park, Maryland, where he worked on the kinetics of biofilters operating on aquacultural systems. In November 2006, James was selected as a Fulbright Senior Specialists Candidate (Council for International Exchange of Scholars, Washington DC) Dr. Ebeling has been involved in aquaculture for over 25 years and has cultured over 20 species of fish. He spent three years at the Mariculture Research and Training Center, University of Hawaii as a research coordinator, and one year as project manager for the design and construction of the Fish Barn at the North Carolina State University. Dr. Ebeling also spent five years as a research and extension associate at the Piketon Research and Extension Center, Ohio State University, Piketon, Ohio where he was responsible for design, construction, and maintenance of the aquaculture facilities and for maintaining the fish as well as for the Center Aquaculture Extension Program. He spent six years at the Conservation Funds Freshwater Institute as an Environmental Research Engineer, working in basic and applied research as well as the application of monitoring and computer control to biological and aquatic ecosystems. Most recently, Dr. Ebeling was employed as a Research Engineer by Aquaculture Systems Technologies, LLC, New Orleans, LA, conducting research as part of several Small Business Innovative Research grants on denitrification, waste management and system engineering and design. Currently, Dr. Ebeling is a semi-retired aquaculture engineer, who immigrated to Tucson Arizona in 2012. E-mail: JamesEbeling@aol.com.
