MXPA96005041A - Method to increase the production in the ocean of fish and seafood comestib - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to a method of producing edible fish and shellfish comprising (1) testing the water on the surface of the ocean to determine the nutrients that are being lost, (2) applying a fertilizer containing the nutrients that are lost, to fertilize the surface of the ocean and (3) harvest the increased production of fish and seafood that results from fetilization

Description

METHOD FOR IQJCREMECTING PRODUCTION EW THE OCEAN r * B EDIBLE FISH AND SEAFOOD BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION The field of the invention is the production of edible fish and seafood. The ancient history of the human race shows us as hunter-gatherers, who take what the earth produces for their own purposes. These hunter-gatherers are part of the natural scene which has changed the natural scene for their own purposes. Approximately 7,000 to 8,000 years ago in the Middle East, this scheme changed with the domestication of wild animals such as the cow, the pig, the goat, the sheep and the dog. At that point, our ancestors began to shepherd domestic animals towards better pastures with the changes of seasons and conditions. Our ancestors continued to hunt and collect food, but they found that grazing was more productive. This trend continued with the domestication of the horse in the arid regions of Western Asia. Then, about 5,500 years ago, a new neighborhood invention with the civilized world. This invention was the mouldboard plow, which increased the REP: 23297 Farmer's productivity by approximately a factor of seven. I also changed the way I saw the earth, from a passive acceptance to an active intervention. This change resulted in the planting of favorite crops, instead of accepting what had always grown in that place. Our ancestors also began to add water and nutrients to the soil, to further increase productivity. These transitions were not always gradual or lacking in controversy. For many years, there was a free wandering in the Western States of the United States of America. At that time, some people strongly argued against bars, roads, houses, farms, railroad tracks and other invasions in free roaming. They argued, correctly, that the cities would follow such invasions in free roaming. Although such transitions have progressed considerably relative to land, they have hardly begun in the oceans, which cover three-quarters of the earth's surface. A similar change in the increased productivity of the oceans can be obtained by similar changes. The fishermen and fisherwomen of the world have known for many years that there is a great variation in the productivity of the different areas of the oceans and other bodies of water. Recently, the degree of this variation has been measured and its reasons determined. It is known that approximately 60% of all life in the ocean is at 2% of the ocean's surface. Therefore, the ocean can be considered as a vast desert with only some green areas where life abounds. These green areas are easy to determine. For most of the surface of the ocean, they can be seen from approximately 49 to 91 meters (150 to 300 feet) through the water, as can be seen without the currents of the gulf. In contrast, in the productive zones of the oceans only approximately 0.6 meters (2 feet) can be seen through the water because the living matter in the water is too dense. This is the case of the natural upward current off the coast of Peru. Samples of these productive areas and other areas of the ocean have been taken. The difference has been determined. The productive zones of the ocean are rich in iron, phosphorus, nitrogen and trace minerals, while the rest of the ocean lacks one or more of these elements. These mineral fertilizers are required in order to. obtain the maximum production of edible fish and shellfish from a given area in the ocean. There is considerable variation in the nutrients present in different areas of the ocean surface, and samples must be taken and analyzed in order to determine the exact concentration of nutrients required to obtain the productivity of the Peruvian updraft. The oceans suggest land in several aspects: (1) there is never a drought in the oceans; (2) the oceans move; and (3) the oceans are mixed both vertically and horizontally. The first difference means that the oceans need only minor constituents in order to obtain improved productivity. There is also easy access to the oceans, without the need to build railroad tracks and roads. The second difference means that the fertilization can be carried out in a position that is very distant from the position in which the harvesting of edible fish and shellfish takes place. The third difference means that fertilization must be carried out on a large scale, or the results of fertilization will be impossible to find. The technique to which the present invention relates relates to the technique of fertilizers and other methods for improving the production of edible fish and shellfish. U.S. Patent No. 4,189,379 describes a method for transporting nutrient-rich water from an aphotic zone of the ocean to a photic zone. This patent describes that the life of the earth depends on the foods that are generated by the organisms of green plants through the process of conversion of light into energy known as photosynthesis. In the oceans, enough sunlight is present to support the process of photosynthesis in only 100 to 200 meters of water below the surface of the ocean. The term photic zone can be used to describe this area, where the totality of the photosynthesis of the oceans takes place. Below the photic zone, there is an aphotic zone where there is insufficient light to support photosynthesis. The production of food that can be collected in the photic zone can be increased by artificially inducing an upward flow of relatively nutrient-rich water from the aphotic zone. This patent additionally discloses a water desalination device which can be submerged in order to induce such updraft, and avoids the disadvantages of thermally operated systems. "Testing the iron hypothesis in ecosystems of the equatorial Pacific Ocean", ("Determination of the iron hypothesis in equatorial Pacific Ocean ecosystems"), JH Martin et al., Nature, Volume 371, pages 123-129 (September 8) 1994) describes a test in which iron can limit the phytoplankton that grows in large regions of the ocean by enriching an area of 64 km2 in the open equatorial Pacific Ocean with iron. This results in a reported duplication of plant biomass, a threefold increase in chlorophyll and a fourfold increase in plant production. Similar increases are reported in a chlorophyll rich water column downstream of the Galapagos Islands, which was naturally enriched with iron. These results indicate in a reported way that the iron limitation can control the production rates of phytoplankton and the biomass in the ocean. There is a large amount of fertilizers and fertilization methods that are known in the related art. U.S. Patent No. 976,793 describes a fertilizer consisting of salts such as nitrates and phosphates of ammonia and potash, with a cementitious material that produces a granular mass, from which these soluble salts are not readily leached by the action of water. U.S. Patent No. 4,579,579 describes a method for preparing a release fertilizer. slow. The fertilizer can be constituted of an organic, natural, highly absorbent carrier material, such as peanut shell with a nutrient material rich in nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium and trace elements, together with a chemically complete and balanced and balanced plant nutrient. Nutrients become available at a slow and controlled rate before they can be leached away from the peanut shells, the organic carrier of the nutrients must be decomposed. In addition, peanut shells act not only as a carrier for nutrients but also, themselves, as a nutrient material. U.S. Patent No. 4,581,846 describes a system and method for fertilizing a forest, farm or other large community of vegetables. One of the objects of the invention described in this patent is to provide a source of long-lasting nutrients from solid and liquid municipal waste. The patent describes a centralized system that involves the conversion of insoluble organic compounds and minerals to soluble plant nutrients by means of microorganisms that live inside a cellulose matrix of a large package. U.S. Patent No. 4,755,397 describes a particulate encapsulation process based on starch. This patent describes a method for encapsulating a wide variety of materials during the use of starch as the encapsulating agent, this encapsulation process can be used to encapsulate a wide range of materials including regulators for plant growth and fertilizers. U.S. Patent No. 4,911,952 describes entrapment encapsulation within an unmodified starch matrix. A substantially complete encapsulation is obtained without the use of chemical cross-linking reagents. The process can be used to encapsulate nutrients, micronutrients and a wide variety of other agents. U.S. Patent No. 5,143,020 describes an apparatus for fertilizing reservoirs or ponds. This apparatus comprises a receiver that is placed below a flotation structure. The flotation structure is provided with a funnel-shaped opening. The fertilizer can be poured through the funnel-shaped opening inside the receiver. Water can flow between the top of the receiver and the flotation structure and therefore dissolve the fertilizer.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION A method is obtained to increase the production of edible fish and shellfish in the oceans by (1) testing the ocean water in order to determine the nutrients that are lacking in the water, (2) applying a fertilizer to the ocean water is composed of a microorganism that fixes nitrogen and sufficient nutrients to cause the microorganism to fix nitrogen (if the ocean water lacks nitrates), and other missing nutrients, and (3) collect the edible fish and shellfish that are produced by fertilization . The test can be carried out in any of several methods that are known to a person ordinarily skilled in the art, in order to determine the nutrients that are lacking to a significant degree in the water. It is considered that a nutrient is needed to a significant degree, if the production of edible fish and shellfish is reduced to a significant extent by the level of nutrients in the water. Fertilization can be carried out by using one or more fertilizers. If the ocean water lacks nitrates, then the fertilizers should be made up of nitrogen-fixing organisms, such as blue-green algae and phytoplankton (Trichodesmium) which fix nitrogen in the open sea, and enough nutrients to make the microorganisms fix nitrogen. Preferably, the microorganisms and nutrients, which are required to cause the microorganisms to fix nitrogen are localized (for example in the same fertilizer particles), so that the nutrients are immediately available to the microorganisms when they are in the waters of the body. ocean. Careful addition of iron may be the only nutrient required to cause blue-green algae and phytoplankton (Trichodesmiu) to reproduce and fine nitrogen. Fertilizers must provide the other nutrients (different from nitrates) that are needed in the ocean water. Thus, based on the results in the test, the fertilizer can be made up of iron, phosphate, microorganisms that fix nitrogen and minerals in traces, as well as other materials. Preferably, the fertilizer is attached to a floating material such as rice husk, wheat scraps or husks, ground corn cobs, peanut shells and / or other material that floats ecologically suitable. The fertilizer may also comprise a high molecular weight starch, which allows the prolonged release of the fertilizer from the floating materials. Harvesting edible fish and shellfish can be carried out at the point of fertilizer application, but at a later time, or when an ocean current is involved, harvesting can take place at a point downstream from the ocean. point at which * the fertilizer was applied.

Ocean fertilization according to the present invention can greatly increase the productivity of edible ocean fish and shellfish. (The term "oceans" also includes seas, bays and other large bodies of water). For example, the fertilization of the ocean along the coasts of the Atlantic and the Pacific of the United States can increase the productivity of these coasts to the level that naturally occurs outside the coasts of Peru. This can increase the productivity of edible fish and shellfish along the Atlantic and Pacific coasts of the United States by a factor of 30 or more, and thus provide hundreds of new jobs and revitalize the fishing industry that it is currently in decline in certain areas of the United States, and at the same time it generates food with high quality proteins both for consumption within the country and for export. The fertilization of the ocean can also increase the fishing of fish from the coasts of other countries with the same benefits. Ocean fertilization can take place within national waters, so it is ensured that the benefits of the increased production of fish and shellfish, edibles would ensure the benefit of the fishing industry of the country that performs the fertilization of the ocean. For example, all fertilization by the United States can be carried out within the limit of 323 kilometers (200 miles), so that essentially the entire impact would be within the waters of the United States. The basic parameter of ocean fertilization is that 0.45 kilograms (1 pound) of fertilizer produces approximately 1.8 to 9.1 metric tons (2 to 10 tons) of biomass in the ocean. A conservative estimate would establish that 0.9 metric tons (1 ton) would produce approximately 3600 metric tons (4,000 tons) of biomass in the ocean. The productivity per surface area will be higher in the fertilized ocean, compared to a fertilized land. Sugar cane cultivation currently produces approximately 36 metric tons per 0.4 hectares (40 tons per acre) per year. If the same rate of production is maintained in ocean fertilization, this would produce approximately 23,300 metric tons per 2.6 square kilometers (25,600 tons per square mile) per year On land, fertilization is almost always accompanied by planting. In the ocean, fertilization can be combined with the production of algae, egg masses and other organisms that include juvenile fish from hatcheries or fish farms, which can additionally increase the production of edible fish and shellfish from the ocean. Sowing and fertilization are carried out in the spring and harvesting is usually carried out in the fall.On the ocean farms, the amount of time between fertilization and harvesting depends on several factors. the algae reproduce after fertilization is about four days, then the plankton rubs on the algae, The fish are eaten as bait by the plankton and continue the food chain towards large mammals and fish. Off the coast of the United States, the most important currents are the current of the gulf and the Japanese current. Each of these flows at approximately 6.4 kilometers per hour (4 miles per hour). Therefore, fertilization at a position on the surface of the ocean in any of these streams will produce results for collection in another downstream position. A time delay of approximately four days will be approximately 645 kilometers (400 miles) at approximately 6.4 kilometers per hour (4 miles per hour). For the gulf stream, this means that fertilization off Key West, Florida, would result in improved fishing in northern Florida, and more fish would occur off the coasts of Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina and Virginia. Improved fishing would continue for many miles of the gulf stream, based on how fertilization is carried out. Ocean fertilization can be carried out in regions that are north like Massachusetts in the summer when the gulf current often approaches the coast. In contrast, during the winter, the farmer current transports cold water with a relatively high content of nutrients down to the regions of New York and New Jersey. Under these winter conditions, the current of the gulf tends to change direction towards Europe, outside the limit of 200 miles (323 kilometers) off the coast of Virginia. The tests can determine that ocean fertilization in the gulf stream can be carried out even earlier, for example off the west coast of Florida, so that the growth of the algae already occurs at the moment when the current of the Gulf surround Key West, Florida. This could allow more time to collect the largest fish from the East Coast of the United States before the Gulf Stream changes direction to the West, outside the national waters of the United States. In the gulf stream, it is expected that the fertilizer will consist mainly of iron with some phosphates and some microorganisms that fix nitrogen, in order to raise the nutrient content to a concentration of the upward current of Peru. Ocean fertilization can be verified by testing because the gulf stream is complex, with eddies and turbulent streams along the coast, and storms, tides and occasional hurricanes also produce effects. However, the result of the fertilization of the ocean almost certainly will be that the algae will grow and the consequent will take place. Ocean fertilization is effective only at the upper ocean level, and preferably at the top of approximately 30 meters (100 feet) of the ocean. Therefore, the preferred method of fertilizing the ocean that binds the fertilizer to a floating material, such as rice husks, wheat husks, ground corn cobs, peanuts husk and the like. Preferably, the fertilizer will be in a form that will dissolve on the surface of the water for a period of days, or perhaps in a period as long as one week. Therefore, a preferred method of ocean fertilization will include a mixture of fertilizer material with a high molecular weight starch, so as to produce a fertilizer that dissolves slowly in ocean waters. The initial method of ocean fertilization will be designed to transport a relevant portion of the ocean surface to the nutrient composition of the ocean surface in the Peruvian updraft due to the known production of edible fish and shellfish in that area. The ocean fertilization method will preferably include additional tests and studies on the growth dynamics of edible fish and shellfish under fertilization conditions, so that further modifications and improvements in fertilizer composition and composition can be made. Ocean fertilization method. Ocean fertilization of approximately 140,000 square kilometers (53,000 square miles), at a rate that removes approximately 1,220 million metric tons (1,340 million tons) of carbon dioxide (C02) initially requires approximately 230, 000 metric tons (250,000 tons) per year of fertilizer. This is approximately 900 metric tons (1,000 tons) per day for 250 days a year. If the fertilizer applied to the ocean costs approximately $ 200 per 0.9 metric tons (1 ton), then the cost is approximately $ 50,000,000 per year. The cost of ocean fertilization preferably also includes the cost of verification, testing and reporting, so as to optimize the method of ocean fertilization, which includes optimizing the composition of the fertilizer, the rate or regime of application and the application location. The detailed description above is mainly directed to the gulf stream because it flows near the large population centers of the United States and has an existing fishing industry. However, the present improved production method of edible fish and shellfish is also applicable to other areas. Modifications of the method based on location will be required. For example, the current method is applicable to the West Coast of the United States as well. The Japanese current resides natural fertilization of the rising currents of the Bering Sea. This increases the production of whole edible seafood that goes to the lower coast of the state of Washington, but the production of edible fish and shellfish decreases or decreases along the Oregon coast and it loses over time as the Japanese current reaches Northern California. The Japanese stream can be fertilized off the coast of Washington State in order to increase the production of edible fish and shellfish off of the Oregon Coast and the California Coast. Therefore, the present method allows for variation, which includes variation in the composition of the fertilizer, as well as the position and nature of the application of the fertilizer, based on the area of the ocean that is to be fertilized. The present method of ocean fertilization can use arcs that are in the sea for approximately 120 days, and that have a capacity to transport approximately 110,000 metric tons (120,000 tons) of fertilizer. Boats must be provided with pumps to mix the fertilizer with seawater and disperse the mixture in the ocean. Each boat can be provided with 3 pumps of 2,500 horsepower each, in order to disperse a mixture of 90% seawater and 10% fertilizer on the cup. Each ship needs to have a capacity of approximately 90,000 kiloliters (600,000 Bbls) which is a medium sized tank. The fertilization of the ocean will result in the growth of algae. The growth of algae will remove C02 from the water and then from the air. Biomass will become part of the food chain and will eventually include large fish and whales. Animal life will oxidize the biomass and return the C02 to the ocean and finally to the air. Part of the biological material will descend to the ocean floor where it will be captured by the lower currents and finally recycled to the updrafts. The total carbon that becomes part of this cycle is removed from the waters of the ocean and the atmosphere. Over time, a balance will be reached that is very similar to that of mature forests, after which there will be no reduction in atmospheric CO 2. The length of time the ocean will reach this equilibrium is estimated to be many hundreds of years, but it can not be determined with certainty. This means that a continuous fertilization of the ocean will eliminate net C02 for a substantial period of time to come. Production of approximately 900 metric tons (1 billion tons) of algae (biomass) per year would produce approximately 45,000,000 metric tons (50,000,000 tons) of additional fish, considering the equivalence of approximately 1.1 metric tons (1 metric tons) of Useful fish for every 18 metric tons (20 tons) of algae. This is approximately 0.45 kilograms (1 pound) of additional fish per day for every man, woman and child in the United States, which could be obtained by using the present method of improved production of edible fish and shellfish in the Gulf Stream as it is discussed in the above. Therefore, a source of highly nutritious food would be produced both for residents of the United States and for other countries by utilizing the present method of improved production of edible fish and shellfish in the gulf stream. The fertilizer to be used in the present method of production of edible fish and shellfish will have many specifications, for example the speed of dissolution and the density lower than that of the water, as well as the required nutrient value and the content of microorganisms that fix nitrogen. The least expensive source of untreated materials that require chemical composition will suffice, because marine life appears to be capable of processing fertilizer regardless of the form or chemical combination. The fertilizer should not contain toxic chemicals in a concentration that could harm marine life, and should be free of pathogens that can be ingested by consumers of edible fish and shellfish. Therefore, there are many waste streams, which can be processed to produce a suitable fertilizer at a low cost, and the significant addition of effort to recycle waste.

The current improved production method of edible seafood can have a significant economic impact. The production of 45,000,000 metric tons (50,000,000 tons) per year of additional edible fish and shellfish along the coast of the United States would produce $ 50,000,000,000 per year of industry if the value of edible fish and shellfish averages $ 0.50 per 0.45 kilograms (1 pound) This could create one million new jobs for each coast and a new job is generated for every $ 50,000 in sales per year. Variations of the invention may be considered by those skilled in the art and the invention is limited only by the claims appended hereto. It is noted that in relation to this date, the best method known by the applicant to carry out the aforementioned invention, is the conventional one for the manufacture of the objects to which it relates. Having described the invention as above, the content of the following is claimed as property.

Claims (20)

1. A method to increase the production of edible fish and shellfish in the ocean, characterized in that it comprises the steps of: (i) testing an ocean surface area, in order to determine at least one of the nutrients that are needed in an ocean significant amount; and (ii) applying a fertilizer to fertilize the ocean surface, the fertilizer comprises at least one microorganism that fixes nitrogen and at least one member selected from the group consisting of nutrients; and (iii) collect at least a portion of the increased production of edible seafood that results from ocean fertilization.

2. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that the microorganism comprises at least one member selected from the group consisting of blue-green algae and phytoplankton, the fertilizer is constituted with sufficient localized nutrients to cause at least one microorganism to fix nitrogen .

3. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that the fertilizer comprises a phosphate.

4. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that the fertilizer comprises iron.

5. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that the fertilizer comprises minerals in traces.

6. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that the application of the fertilizer is combined with the introduction of algae, egg masses or other organisms that include juvenile fish from hatcheries or fish farms.

7. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that the floating material is selected from rice husk, wheat husks or debris, ground corn cobs, peanut husk and other floating materials, ecologically suitable. *** - > •

8. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that the fertilizer additionally comprises a high molecular weight starch.

9. The method according to claim 2, characterized in that the fertilizer comprises iron, and a high molecular weight starch.

10. An improved production method of edible fish and seafood, characterized in that it comprises the following steps: (i) testing an ocean surface area, in order to determine at least one of the nutrients that are needed to a significant degree; and (ii) apply a fertilizer to fertilize the surface of the ocean, the fertilizer comprises a material that floats and at least one of the nutrients; and (iii) collect at least a portion of the increased production of edible seafood that results from ocean fertilization.

11. A method for the fertilization of the ocean, characterized because it comprises the following stage: apply a fertilizer to fertilize the surface of the ocean, «**** - the fertilizer comprises a material that floats and at least one microorganism that fixes nitrogen.

12. The method according to claim 11, characterized in that the microorganism comprises at least one member selected from the group consisting of blue-green algae and phytoplankton, and the fertilizer comprises sufficient localized nutrients to cause at least one microorganism to fix nitrogen.

13. The method according to claim 11, characterized in that the fertilizer comprises a phosphate.

14. The method according to claim 11, characterized in that the fertilizer comprises iron.

15. The method according to claim 11, characterized in that the fertilizer comprises minerals in traces.

16. The method according to claim 11, characterized in that the application of the fertilizer is combined with the introduction of algae, egg masses or other organisms that include juvenile fish from hatcheries or fish farms.

17. The method according to claim 11, characterized in that the floating material is selected from rice husk, wheat husks or debris, ground corn cobs, peanut husk and other floating materials, ecologically suitable.

18. The method according to claim 11, characterized in that the fertilizer additionally comprises a high molecular weight starch.

19. The method according to claim 11, characterized in that the fertilizer comprises iron, and a high molecular weight starch.

20. The method according to claim 12, characterized in that the fertilizer comprises iron, and a high molecular weight starch. A method to increase the production of edible seafood in the oceans is described, which comprises (1) testing the water on the ocean surface in order to determine the nutrients that are missing, (2) applying water to the ocean, and fertilizer that comprises a microorganism that fixes nitrogen and sufficient nutrients to cause the microorganism to fix nitrogen (if the ocean water lacks nitrate), and the other nutrients that are needed, and (3) to collect the increased production of edible fish and seafood that results from fertilization.