Grant: Applied Research and Development Grants - Level 2

North Island College and an area fisheries association will grow a local shellfish over the next three years that will benefit area First Nations, thanks to a grant from NSERC. The research project will grow Pacific geoduck (pronounced gooey-duck), which is the largest burrowing clam species and is native to British Columbia (BC). Geoduck farming began in BC in the 1990s, and since that time there has been growing interest in expanding the industry, given the clams are worth up to US$150/lb in Asian markets. However, it was only in 2017 that a geoduck management framework was finalized; applications for tenure space to farm geoduck throughout the BC coast are now being accepted for the first time since the early 1990s. The proposed 3-year ARD project will explore geoduck aquaculture pre-commercialization in the BC Central Coast, in partnership with the Central Coast Commercial Fisheries Association (CCCFA) - a for-profit business that is an alliance of four Central Coast communities: Heiltsuk, Kitasoo/Xai'Xais, Nuxalk and Wuikinuxv. Research activities will take place within the traditional territories of three of the above coastal First Nations (the Kitasoo/Xai'Xais Nation, the Heiltsuk Nation, and the Wuikinuxv Nation). Year 1 of the project will focus on comparing biophysical conditions at five potential geoduck aquaculture sites in the Central Coast, and growing geoduck seed stock for use in years 2 and 3. Years 2 and 3 will compare juvenile geoduck performance (growth and survival) between sites, and kelp will be co-cultured on subtidal sites to assist geoduck performance. Both the biophysical and geoduck performance data will inform a mathematical model on the sites' production capacity. Geoduck aquaculture is a relatively new, and highly lucrative, economic development opportunity for coastal communities. This project will provide the first pre-commercialization research on geoduck aquaculture in the Central Coast, and will build capacity within CCCFA to become the first geoduck aquaculture company in the Central Coast. CCCFA has extensive knowledge related to marine fisheries and seafood markets, and will be more than capable of utilizing the project results to diversify their operations and increase revenue.