The town of Nantucket revealed a new photobioreactor. Nicknamed Weird Al Plankovic (as a reference to American comedic musician Weird Al Yankovic), the device will supercharge the Natural Resources Department’s production of algae at the Brant Point Shellfish Hatchery.
The bioreactor is capable of creating algae to feed the hatchery’s bay scallop larvae and brood stock. This production translates to more efficient operations, lower costs, and also minimizes the biosecurity issues associated with traditional microalgae culture.
Made by Industrial Plankton, the “Weird Al Plankovic” bioreactor will allow for a constant supply of healthy microalgae for at least eight weeks. The machine features computer generated and remote harvests and cleaning, as well as a 75 percent reduction of labor requirements and the use of chemicals associated with current techniques. Nantucket is the first town in Massachusetts to install such technology for the hatchery production of shellfish.
First arriving at the Brant Point Shellfish Hatchery on January 17th, the impressive unit was later installed with assistance from the Nantucket Sewer Department, which safely transported the unit across the beach and into the facility. In order to get acquainted with the new technology, a team from the Natural Resources Department attended a three-day training.
“It’s basically a self-contained algae producer,” said hatchery technician Joe Minella. “It’s an awesome machine and it works really well. You basically have algae on tap.”
The Brant Point Shellfish Hatchery conducts controlled spawns and larval release of Nantucket bay scallops in the harbor. As of the beginning of February, the hatchery had produced 50 million larvae.
