Graduation Year

2017

Document Type

Campus Only Senior Thesis

Degree Name

Bachelor of Arts

Department

Environmental Analysis

Reader 1

Kimberly Drake

Reader 2

Char Miller

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© 2016 Alexandra Harder

Abstract

In the summer of 2016 I worked at The Moore Street Market Farm run by Oko Farms LLC., New York City’s first and largest outdoor urban aquaponics company. Aquaponics is a method of farming that combines the cultivation of aquatic animals and plants in a mutually beneficial, symbiotic relationship. While the industry is in its infancy, aquaponics is acknowledged to have great potential to change the future of farming for sustainability, as it uses less water than traditional agriculture and can be implemented almost anywhere. This thesis examines current challenges to the industry and the potential future applications of aquaponics in urban environments, through discussion of current developments in aquaponics in Europe; Growing Power’s use of aquaponics for community benefit in the Milwaukee; as well as in the case-studies of Oko Farms and Agtech aquaponics companies in New York City. While eventually concluding that implementations of aquaponics for profit might not be viable in the long run, this thesis ends with a short discussion on hypothetical successful applications the industry could thrive in.


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