Adi Associates participates in Event to commemorate World Fisheries Day

Last Friday, Rachel Decelis from Adi Associates was invited to speak at an event organised by the Department of Fisheries and Aquaculture to commemorate World Fisheries Day.

This event follows from a workshop that Adi Associates coordinated earlier in the year – the BLUEfasma Living Lab, which aims at finding innovative solutions to sustainably use and preserve coastal heritage by applying the principles of the circular economy. In her presentation, Rachel presented the ideas that participants had come up with during the Living Lab event, which included proposals for the preservation of traditional Maltese boats (luzzu) and the creation of sustainable and local tourism products.

Other speakers included Dr Mark Dimech representing AquaBioTech, who spoke about the environmental impact of lost and discarded fishing gear and proposed sustainable alternatives. Dr Alicia Bugeja Said spoke about the condition of the blue economy in Malta and highlighted the importance of promoting and consuming local fish species.

Prof. Alan Deidun from the University of Malta gave an overview of the BYTHOS project – one of the interesting research areas in this project focuses on extracting collagen from discarded components of tuna fish, in this way making a useful product from waste. Dr Robert Vassallo Agius, aquaculture consultant, discussed the blue economy in the aquaculture sector, and the opportunities that exist in this area.

Participants had the opportunity to discuss some of the challenges and opportunities in the sector, including regarding waste management, management of lost fishing gear, opportunities for multi-trophic aquaculture, and other ideas to implement circular economy principles in the sector.

Posted in Adi Associates on November 22, 2021