1 2. Hydroponic & Aquaponic Subcommittee Report Preserving a philosophy while embracing a changing world Colin Archipley Angela Caporelli Marianne Cufone Charlie Shultz Pierre Sleiman Stacy Tollefson Edgar Torres Jessica Vaughan Please note - this document was prepared under very tight time constraints. The Hydroponics and Aquaponics Subcommittee was tasked with both providing specific information about growing systems, supported by scientific research and case studies, as well as reviewing and answering other questions regarding coordination with organic production standards and the 2010 NOSB Recommendations. The full Task Force, now split into three subcommittees, was initially to be a full year proJect. It began in November 2015 with preliminary discussions. The first and only in-person meeting was January 2016. The proJect deadline was shortened by five months to June 2016 and then a slight extension to mid-July 2016. As such, it was not possible to complete all the tasks of the Hydroponics and Aquaponics Subcommittee with the detail and specific information, supported by research, as initially intended, due to the lack of adequate time to address all matters. 1 2 Table of Contents Introduction .......................................................................................................................................... 4 Definitions ............................................................................................................................................ 5 Brief Review of the Organic Food Productions Act (OFPA) and USDA Organic Regulations ............... 7 History .............................................................................................................................................. 7 Traditional (non-organic) Hydroponic Systems .................................................................................. 12 a) Water-based Systems ................................................................................................................ 13 b) Aggregate culture ....................................................................................................................... 13 Organic Hydroponics - Bioponics ....................................................................................................... 15 a) Why bioponics is relevant to the NOSB/NOP ............................................................................. 15 b) How is bioponics different from Hydroponics .............................................................................. 16 c) Containers and Container Systems ............................................................................................ 17 d) Growing Media ........................................................................................................................... 18 1. Solid (aggregate) growing media ............................................................................................ 18 2. Liquid growing media .............................................................................................................. 19 e) Biology ....................................................................................................................................... 20 f) Nutrition ...................................................................................................................................... 22 Examples of Organic Inputs and Associated Nutrients................................................................ 23 Advantages of Bioponic Systems....................................................................................................... 24 a) Water Conservation ................................................................................................................... 24 b) Food Safety ............................................................................................................................... 24 c) Disease Suppression ................................................................................................................. 24 d) Nutrient Conservation & Retention ............................................................................................. 25 e) Soil Conservation ....................................................................................................................... 25 Aquaponics ........................................................................................................................................ 26 a) Water-based production ............................................................................................................. 26 b) Types of aquaponic systems ...................................................................................................... 26 c) Fish waste and mineralization in aquaponic systems ................................................................. 26 d) Aquaponic System Factors ........................................................................................................ 27 e) Aquaponic System Designs ....................................................................................................... 28 f) Fish ............................................................................................................................................. 28 g) Crop Production ......................................................................................................................... 28 2 3 h) Nutrients .................................................................................................................................... 28 i) Growing media ............................................................................................................................ 28 Considerations and Analysis .............................................................................................................. 30 a) Bioponics and Organic Certification ........................................................................................... 30 b) Areas of alignment ..................................................................................................................... 31 Proposed Changes to USDA Standards ............................................................................................ 42 §205.2 Terms defined. ................................................................................................................. 42 §205.208 Bioponic Production Standard ........................................................................................ 42 Organic Systems Plan Considerations for Bioponics ...................................................................... 43 Clarifications of 2010 NOSB Recommendations ................................................................................ 45 Purpose and Context for this Analysis ............................................................................................ 45 References ........................................................................................................................................ 53 Appendix ........................................................................................................................................... 55 Greenhouse technology to promote soil life ................................................................................... 55 pH that is not too low or too high .................................................................................................... 55 Stable Temperatures of Soil or Growing Media .............................................................................. 55 Soil life wants a Carbon source to feed on ..................................................................................... 56 Case study 1 - Bioponic Tomato Growing .......................................................................................... 57 Case study 2 - Decoupled Bioponic NFT ........................................................................................... 61 Case study 3 - Bio Digestion within a Water Culture System ............................................................. 62 Case study 4 - DWC Aquaponics....................................................................................................... 66 Fish ................................................................................................................................................ 66 Plants ............................................................................................................................................. 67 Shared Water Quality ..................................................................................................................... 67 Effluent Management ..................................................................................................................... 68 Case study 5 - Container production systems .................................................................................... 72 3 4 Introduction The words organic farming conjure not just a set of guidelines for agricultural practices, but also often are associated with a deep philosophy rooted in the concept of improving and maintaining our environment, promoting life beyond just the crop and staying true to preserving nature’s life processes. For as far back as history has recorded, societies worked with limited resources and flourished or failed based on their ability to innovate and adapt to changing environments, resources and conditions.