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Aquaponics

Stefan Wandtke

Comm 1020

Written Speech
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What are aquaponics? Well today Im going to be telling you exactly what Aquaponics

are, and give you information on how effective aquaponic gardening can be. Aquaponics is the

marriage of aquaculture (raising fish) and hydroponics (the soil-less growing of plants) that

grows fish and plants together in one integrated system. The Aquaponic Source (reference

visual aide 1).

So, now we know generally what aquaponics is. Now the question is, how does

aquaponics work? (reference visual aide 2) The aquaponics cycle, which is also known as the

Nitrogen cycle explains how the fish, waste, and plants interact to create a successful ecosystem

for growing food. Japan Aquaponics gives an excellent description of the Aquaponics or nitrogen

cycle:

Fish produce waste and ammonia - these are harmful for the fish in elevated quantities and

decrease the quality of the water. In aquaponics, water from the fish tank is fed to a plant

growbed where the billions of naturally occurring, beneficial micro-organisms break the

ammonia down first into Nitrite and then into Nitrate.

Nitrate and other nutrients are absorbed by the plants to assist in their growth and in turn, serve

to clean the water. Solid waste will also be filtered out of the water by either the growbeds or

some other mechanical process.

Clean water is now returned to the fish tank increasing the water quality and providing the

oxygenated water that the fish need. This is a natural and sustainable process that mimics an

ecosystem and produces high quality food without any chemical inputs.

The last sentence in that quote perfectly leads into my next point, and that is, what are the

benefits of aquaponic gardening? This is a natural and sustainable process that mimics an
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ecosystem and produces high quality food without any chemical inputs. We are looking at a

highly efficient process that reuses and recycles resources.

Traditional gardening brings a slew of problems. Several obvious problems include the amount

of water that is used, soil based insects, fertilizing and soil composition, pests, and of course

weeding.

Traditional hydroponics, which is the process of growing plants without the fish element, relies

heavily on man-made nutrients along with a lot of attention to monitoring the system.

Traditional aquaculture, or raising of fish or aquatic life is also heavily monitored and requires

massive amounts of water to be discharged daily, to maintain appropriate water quality.

Most if not all of the downsides to traditional methods can be solved with aquaponics. No

weeding needs to be done because the aquaponic garden is a controlled environment. This

environment also helps eliminate soil based insects and other pests.

As we learned from the visual about the nitrogen process, the complexities of maintaining and

monitoring a hydroponic garden and raising fish are reduced to a minimum, due to how the

plants filter the water making it safe for the fish, and the fish provide nutrients to the plants in a

symbiotic fashion.

The food that is produced from aquaponic gardens is healthy and organic. Not only that, but it is

a maintainable method of producing food. The country of Australia is embracing the idea of

aquaponics because of its sustainability. Murray Hallam teaches aquaponics in Australia. He said
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it is simple, inexpensive, and takes very little time to maintain once a system has been

established.

"What you have is a closed loop system, in which you are growing vegetables hydroponically, in

tandem with an aquaculture operation," he said.

"The advantages lie in the very low loss of water from the system and that it doesn't release

nutrients, which are effectively pollutants, back into the environment.

"If you look at both aquaculture and hydroponics, both those systems have the problem that they

discharge waste water; that doesn't happen in aquaponics.

"The water from the fish is moved through to the plant side and the plants actually clean the

water for the fish."

Aquaponics is a great solution for a country that copes often with drought. This technique can

also be embraced in any country though, cutting down water waste, and utilizing more

effectively the space we have. All these benefits while also becoming more self-sustaining.

This leads to my last point, which is, how will aquaponics advance life? What is the

future for food production?

Nasa has taken and interest in aquaponics and has taken the technology a step further with

Aeroponics. NASA defines aeroponics as growing plants in an air/mist environment with no

soil and very little water and claiming:

Aeroponics systems can reduce water usage by 98 percent, fertilizer usage by 60 percent, and

pesticide usage by 100 percent, all while maximizing crop yields. Plants grown in the aeroponic
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systems have also been shown to uptake more minerals and vitamins, making the plants healthier

and potentially more nutritious.

Not only is aquaponics a viable method for food production on Earth, but it could end up being

the method for sustaining life throughout space.

Bibliography:

"What is Aquaponics?" English Aquaponics site. N.p., n.d. Web. 04 Apr. 2017.

<http://www.japan-aquaponics.com/what-is-aquaponics.html>.
"Space-Age Gardening: Aquaponics, Hydroponics, and Aeroponics | Make:." Make:

DIY Projects and Ideas for Makers. N.p., 02 May 2014. Web. 04 Apr. 2017.

<http://makezine.com/2014/05/02/space-age-gardening-aquaponics-hydroponics-

and-aeroponics/>.
Dunbar, Brian. "Aquaponics." NASA. NASA, n.d. Web. 04 Apr. 2017.

<https://www.nasa.gov/audience/foreducators/9-12/features/aquaponics.html>.
Marteka, Pete. "Aquaponics farm born in dorm, now a teaching, growing space."

The Washington Times. The Washington Times, 30 Jan. 2016. Web. 04 Apr. 2017.

<http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2016/jan/30/aquaponics-farm-born-in-

dorm-now-a-teaching-growin/>.
Harrison, Ph.D. John Arthur. "Visionlearning.com." Visionlearning. Visionlearning,

Inc., 11 Feb. 2017. Web. 04 Apr. 2017.

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<http://www.visionlearning.com/en/library/Earth-Science/6/The-Nitrogen-

Cycle/98>.
"What is Aquaponics." The Aquaponic Source. N.p., n.d. Web. 04 Apr. 2017.

<https://www.theaquaponicsource.com/what-is-aquaponics/>.
"Fact Sheet: Gardening With Fish." Gardening Australia - Fact Sheet: Gardening With

Fish. N.p., n.d. Web. 04 Apr. 2017.

<http://www.abc.net.au/gardening/stories/s3145623.htm>.
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Aquaponics Speech Outline

Stefan Wandtke

Comm 1020

Aquaponics

I chose the topic of aquaponics because I like the idea of being self-sufficient. I see the

human population growth and wonder how our current methods of food production can be

sustained. If individuals could be self-sufficient, we wouldnt have to be so dependent on a

grocery store having food on the shelves. Not to mention health benefits of being able to produce

ones own food without preservatives and other potentially harmful substances found in food

medicines.

Outline:

I. What are Aquaponics?

The cycle of fish and waste, to fertilizer for plants, and water filtration for the

fish.
II. How does an aquaponic garden work?
The Aquaponics Cycle.
The ecosystem of fish, waste/ nutrients, and water filtration.
III. What are the benefits of aquaponic gardens?
Less weeding to be done.
Reuse and recycle waste.
Great food source that can be easily maintained with proper knowledge.

IV. How can this method of food production advance life?

Possibility of expanding life in space with effective recycling.
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Visual Aides:

This image shows a basic representation of what a aquaponic tank looks like.

This is the commercial side of aquaponics

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The process of the Aquaponic/ Nitrogen cycle.

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Stefan Wandtke - Reflection

E-Portfolio Reflective Writing Prompts for Comm 1020 Signature
Assignment.
What were your thoughts as you learned about this assignment?
It brought everything I have learned from the semester to piece
together my written speech.
How did you overcome any anxiety associated with this assignment?
It seemed like an overwhelming assignment with lots of items due, but
breaking it down and internalizing what needed to be done helped.
Why did you choose this particular speech topic?
I was interested in aquaponics and had no real knowledge of the
subject.
What was your general speech purpose?
To inform about aquaponics and the benefits of it.
Be specific regarding the type of speech organizational style you chose
and your speakers goal.
Topical organization was my style. Combining all of the aspects of
aquaponics and benefits and bringing them back to my thesis.
What research resources did you use?
Websites, books, and videos.
What are your qualifications to speak about this topic?
My knowledge came from the professionals, those who have
experience with aquaponics.
Based on what you learned from your speech research how has it
changed your attitude toward your selected topic be specific?
This isnt a life changing topic, but I learned something new and I really
want to make aquaponics something I participate in, in my life.
What are the main points of your speech?
1. What is aquaponics 2. How it works 3. What are the benefits
What visual aids did you select to support your main points and why?
Be specific to each point.
Pictures of multitiered water gardens with a fish tank at the bottom.
This would give a great visual of what an aquaponic garden is and
looks like.
Another picture to show the process of how the ecosystem of plants,
fish, fish food, waste, etc works.
What life/career lessons did you learn from this assignment? How will
you apply these lessons learned to future public presentations?
I learned that I can learn about anything if I want to dig into it and
really see what it is about. Everything I learned was theory of course, it
would be great to put what I learned into practice.
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How have other college courses helped with this assignment or how
will this experience help you with other college courses?
It taught me how to look for information and turn it into something
such as an informative speech. Its a skill that can be taken into any
job or workplace.
If given the opportunity what counsel or advice would you offer to
someone regarding the ability to effectively presenting your ideas in
public?
Know your material. If you can talk about something you are interested
in, it makes it that much easier.