PARTNERS
AN ALLIANCE
between the world of research
and business.
UNIVERSITY OF SALENTO – DiSTeBA
Department of Biological and Environmental Sciences and Technologies
LECCE
Scientific manager and coordinator of the REMEDIALIFE project : Adriana Giangrande
E-mail: adriana.giangrande@unisalento.it
Project team:
Adriana Giangrande, Margherita Licciano, Patrizia Pagliara, Patrizia Cretì, Michela del Pasqua, Alessandra Inguscio
Collaboratori: Antonio Morgante
Alongside the two fundamental objectives of training and research, the University of Salento pursues a third mission, that is, to promote the direct application, enhancement and use of knowledge to contribute to the social, cultural and economic development of the territory. Internationally, the University of Salento pursues all forms of collaboration aimed at fostering mutual knowledge and enrichment between cultures, the circulation of knowledge and the exchange of students and staff.
The Department of Biological and Environmental Sciences and Technologies (DiSTeBA) includes 35 active research laboratories that have taken part in prestigious international programs. DiSTeBA is also part of some national and European consortia, National Competence Centers, and Public Research Laboratory Networks, as well as one European network of excellence.
The Laboratory of Zoology within the DiSTeBA has a multi-year experience in benthic research, with experts in taxonomy of different marine invertebrate groups that also deals with many aspects of their biology within researches on biodiversity and conservation of marine environments. Since several years The Zoology Laboratory has been working on the experimentation of biofilters, particularly utilizing annelid polychaetes in the reduction of the particulate organic matter and bacterial load from surrounding environment.
This line of research involves basic studies on feeding ecology, physiology and all aspects concerning the life cycle of the target species.
Researches conducted in collaboration with the coordinated Beneficiaries underlined these organisms as potential candidate for bioremediation in aquaculture within both in-shore and off-shore farming scenario. The team is also specialized in the rearing of polychaetes, also by asexual reproduction, in order to attain the optimization of worm biomass production useful to bioremediate polluted areas. The studies conducted in the laboratory led to further field experimentation. Several projects dealing with field experience were conducted along the Apulian coasts where survival and growing capability of biorimediating organisms were studied in several environmental conditions. (Progetto MIPA V piano triennale: Biorimediazione della acque e dei sedimenti reflui; Progetto POR Puglia: POINT Attività di policoltura Integrata alla Mitilicoltura. Progetto Pilota nei Mari di Taranto; Progetto MIPA VI piano triennale della pesca e dell’acquacoltura in acque marine e salmastre: Biorimediazione in policolture integrate off e in-shore; Progetto BIOIMPACT Progetto pilota per la diversificazione delle produzioni in maricoltura e la riduzione dell’impatto ambientale). These projects have allowed applicants to obtain encouraging results and highlight how the investigated marine organisms are easily obtainable through farming in polyculture and represent a by-product of bioremediation, with potentially high commercial value. Finally, one of the last projects concerned the extraction of active molecules from the produced biomass (Progetto strategico ACTIBIOMAR Finanziamento Regione Puglia).
UNIVERSITY OF BARI “ALDO MORO”
DEPARTMENT OF BIOLOGY
BARI
Scientific manager of the REMEDIALIFE project: Caterina Longo
E-mail: caterina.longo@uniba.it
Project Team:
Caterina Longo, Giuseppe Corriero, Carlotta Nonnis Marzano, Mariella Mercurio, Roberta Trani, Maria Cristina Bruno e Carmela Pontrelli
Collaborators: Cataldo Pierri e Frine Cardone
The University of Bari Aldo Moro consists of 23 Departments and also hosts the Consortium of Mediterranean Universities (CUM), recognized by UNESCO as a non-governmental supranational body to which 160 Universities of all Basin Countries currently belong.
The Department of Biology has 18 laboratories, each of them with different functions. The Department also includes the “Magna Grecia” Scientific Technological Center at the branch of Taranto, a research center that includes, among others, the laboratories of marine science, marine geophysics and environmental chemistry equipped with state-of-the-art equipment.
The Department carries out teaching, research and development activities in the fields of Zoology, Ecology, Comparative Anatomy, Anthropology, Genetics and Plant Biology. Particular attention in the field of Zoology and Ecology is dedicated to environmental protection and sustainable animal production in the aquatic environment (breeding technologies, nutrition and feeding of animals).
The research team of the marine zoology section has been experimenting with the use of filter feeding organisms (in particular sponges and ascidians) in the reduction of organic particulate and of the bacterial load in environments subject to high anthropogenic pressures. In particular, some species of sponges were proved to be useful in removing bacteria in eutrophic environments on account of their capability to both accumulate bacteria and tolerate high level of microbial pollution. Moreover, the impact of grazing on bacteria may be crucial especially in coastal environments, such as impacted semi-enclosed basins also in presence of aquaculture activities, sponges are able to accumulate different bacterial groups. Researches conducted in collaboration with the DiSTeBA of the University of Salento underlined these organisms as potential candidate for bioremediation of aquaculture wastes.
The team is also specialized in the rearing of sponge in order to attain the optimization of their biomass production useful to bioremediate polluted areas. Several projects dealing with field experience were conducted where survival and growing capability of biorimediating organisms were studied in several environmental conditions (Messa a punto di tecniche di spongicoltura lungo le coste della penisola salentina; Realizzazione di un impianto per la produzione di poriferi di interesse commerciale e messa a punto di metodologie per la loro reintroduzione in ambiente naturale; Biorimediazione in policolture integrate off e in-shore”, sottoprogetto: “Realizzazione di un sistema off-shore di produzione di biomassa animale integrato e autodepurante: poriferi commerciali e mitili (funded by Italian Ministry of agricultural, food and forest policies); Prima esperienza di spongicoltura lungo le coste italiane (funded by Italian Marine Natural Reserve “Isola di Ustica”); Progetto pilota per la diversificazione delle produzioni in maricoltura e la riduzione dell’impatto ambientale (BIOIMPACT) (funded by Apulia Region); Biorimediazione in attività di acquacoltura in ambienti confinati mediante uso di invertebrati bentonici” (funded by Apulia Region as part of European Fisheries Fund 2007-2013 Action 3.5 – Pilot Project). These projects have allowed applicants to obtain encouraging results and highlight how the investigated marine organisms are easily obtainable through farming in polyculture and represent a by-product of bioremediation, with potentially high commercial value.
CNR – IAMC
Institute for the Coastal Marine Environment
TARANTO
Scientific manager of the REMEDIALIFE project: Loredana Stabili
E-mail: loredana.stabili@iamc.cnr.it
Project Team:
Loredana Stabili, Maria Immacolata Acquaviva, Rosa Anna Cavallo, Ester Cecere, Marcella Narracci, Antonella Petrocelli, Santina Giandomenico, Lucia Spada, Marianna D’Amato
Collaborator: Giorgio Alabiso
The Institute for the Coastal Marine Environment of the National Research Council (IAMC-CNR) consists of 6 sections and a marine biology laboratory that traditionally deals with issues related to the marine sciences in particular aspects of biology, chemistry, physics and geology and studies on renewable resources (fisheries and aquaculture) and marine technologies. Among the most representative lines of research are: -aquaculture, with studies on the diversification of livestock species and development of sustainable production systems for marine organisms production; -chemistry, with the development of a modeling of ecological systems subject to anthropic impact and of chemical-analytical methodologies for environmental monitoring; -marine ecology, with studies on transition environments, bioacoustics and behavioral ecology, based on the use of an eco-systemic approach aimed at the spatial management of resources; -microbiology, with studies of microbial ecology and molecular biology, biotechnology and the role of microorganisms in the decomposition of organic matter; -oceanography, with studies of experimental oceanography, numerical modeling, operational systems for the prediction of sea conditions and the management of sea-based emergencies on a regional and coastal scale; -environmentally sustainable fishing, with studies on the evaluation of resources and sustainable management of the capture processes and the impact of fishing on marine ecosystems; -earth and coastal environment sciences, with the study of solid and geodynamic land, sedimentary environments and paleo climate, as well as marine and coastal cartography; -marine technologies, with development of technologies, both hardware and software, dedicated to the entire supply chain, from technological innovation to optimize the fishing effort to the traceability of products to the market. All in a perspective of energy saving and environmental friendliness. These researches, which also have application characteristics, including technological issues, are also associated with training activities that include a doctorate in Marine Sciences and Engineering (Naples) and a degree in Environmental Sciences and Technologies (Mazara del Vallo). The Institute has several modern equipped laboratories, advanced instrumentation for research at sea and several boats.
The IAMC-CNR of Taranto is organized in several laboratories specially equipped in line with the most advanced international instruments for the following topics: microbiology, oceanography, phycology and ecology. The scientific background and the experience of the participants in the project concern marine microbiology, with the study of microbiological accumulation by filter feeder macroinvertebrates (mussels, sponges, polychaetes) and their role in bioremediation. The focus is also on the study of the role of algae as bioremediators of nitrogen and phosphorus. The team is also specialized in the cultivation of algae in order to obtain the optimization of algal biomass production, and in lipid extraction in light of the growth and expansion of the global market of algal biofuels. The IAMC of Taranto has participated in projects funded by the Apulia Region, some in collaboration with the University of Salento (projects PO.IN.T., POR, BIOIMPACT “and ACTIBIOMAR), but also Agency 2000 financed by the CNR: Assessment of the potential of fixation of CO2 in marine biomass for energy production. This experience allowed applicants to obtain encouraging results and highlight how the investigated marine organisms are easily obtainable through farming in polyculture and represent a by-product of bioremediation, with potentially high commercial value.
S.C.A.R.L
MARICOLTURA MAR GRANDE s.c.a.r.l Taranto (MMG)
Scientific manager of the REMEDIALIFE project: Graziana Basile
maricolutramargrande@libero.it
Staff:
Graziana Basile, Gianluca Basile, Moreno Mantellini e Giuseppe Amendola
The Company MMG is located in the province of Taranto, in the Municipality of Taranto, in a quite confined area where wind and storms are mitigated by the position allowing the work in any season. The Company carries out commercial activities of aquaculture in sea water, brackish or lagoon and related services. MMG currently has 20 floating offshore cages with different sizes of fish active. The fish species bred are the sea bream (Sparus orata) and the sea bass (Dicentrachus labrax). MMG carries out aquaculture activities in a fish facility designed and built according to highly innovative criteria that allow the breeding of marine organisms under elective conditions for the wellbeing and health of the biomasses bred, as a consequence, for the consumer. The use of appropriate, well-established protocols allows the maintenance of high quality standards in all phases of the production cycle. The company has many years of experience in research applied to the development of new technologies in the fisheries, aquaculture and marine biology sectors. In fact, it has already collaborated in the implementation of various projects in the field of aquaculture, allowing the integration of its application know-how in the high-tech production sector with that of research institutions.
The MMG has a production capacity of 150 TON annually, with sales revenues of approximately € 390,000.00.
LIFE is the EU’s financial instrument supporting environmental protection, nature conservation and climate change projects across the EU. Since 1992, LIFE has co-funded over 4500 projects. For the 2014-2020 funding period, LIFE will contribute approximately 3.4 billion euros to environmental and climate protection ….