Besides Algae, another aquatic plant species I am intersted in (on the side), is the humble Duckweed.
This simple creature has amazing potential as a rapid protein and sugar source (up to 45% dry weight respectively,and generally around 2-10% fat!
It has advantages as an ethanol producer as wel as human supplement/animal feedstock.
It can lock carbon and clear contaminated eutrophic waters, removing even up to 90% of excess nitrates and phosphates.
Bioremediation of water resources is already used in pig farms in parts of the US with great success.
Capable of doubling its biomass every 16 hours, it becomes one of the more fast producing crops available if explored.
Growing it is ridiculously simple as they aren't too fussy on water quality, and in fact prefer hypertrophic conditions, as long as it's sunny and the water is very still!
Perfect for a simple pond or bucket system. I simple add some of my chicken waste to the water, leave it in the sun and wait for a harvestable amount to feed back to the chickens. In that time it broke down the waste, cleaned the air and water, and produced food (through its collective photosynthetic reactions). A sustainable closed loop system if one accounts for evaporation and uptake loss of H2O. Meaning it is capable of production as long as some form of fresh water is accessible periodically.
It also does not compete with arable land and can be be incorporated synergystically into other industries, such as an ethanol plant, or waste water treatment facility.
Its rapid photosynthesis and low requirements could be exploited as a closed loop lifesupport system onboard future space vessels, or in our colonies planned for Martian and Lunar missions.
These applications are becoming more and more important to our continued survival on Earth and beyond, as our populations begin to exceed 10 billion, we will need to find new and creative solutions to feed and energise a hungy populous.
I see this as one of our biotech strategies. This humble and primitive of plants we call a weed.
Here's to Duckweed....
Lemna Minor.
By Ken Killeen of Terran Sky
www.TerranSky.com