Farming tilapia in St. John’s, Newfoundland
January 15, 2014
By Liza Mayer
Once Lester’s Farm in St. John’s, Newfoundland is able to send tilapia to market, the event will mark the first time that this species has been farmed in the province.
Early in December the project was green-lighted by St. John’s city council, and Jim Lester, the owner, can now proceed further with the erection of a greenhouse and associated equipment to house and grow the fish. Designed as an aquaponics operation, green plants such as lettuce will consume the nutrients produced by the fish, thereby cleaning the water and recirculating it back to the tanks again.
The application indicates that the structures to be erected would be “greenhouse-style buildings containing closed tanks for raising the tilapia. The tanks would be built above ground and use natural lighting plus some artificial lights when natural daylight is not sufficient to provide 14 hours per day.”
Lester stated that he hopes to have the aquaponics operation on the go by the end of March and put tilapia on the market later in 2014.
– Wesley Harris
