The 5GRuralDorset project is set to deploy a carbon-reduced "aquaculture" video monitoring system in Dorset, England, which is made from sustainable materials in accordance with the local city council.
The monitoring system could prove vital to the burgeoning "aquaculture" sector - the practice of breeding, raising and farming fish in a sustainable format. Credit: 5GRuralDorset
The system will analyse sea and environmental conditions, visually track seaweed growth, and monitor shellfish biofouling indicators, using two subsurface cameras to be analysed via machine learning.
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It harnesses 5G technology and will be trialled by local fishing company Jurassic Seafarms based at Portland Harbour in Dorset.
The data collected will be used to process solutions into better-informed farming practices, reducing labour and operating costs and increasing productivity in both the farming and fishing sectors.
The system was supplied by local startup JET Engineering Solutions and extends their contribution to the £8 million (€9.24 million) 5GRuralDorset project - a project into 5G-powered agricultural technology in order to increase the productivity for local farmlands.
The contribution also includes the deployment of JET's "Surf Condition Monitoring" buoys, which are constructed using sustainable materials such as flax fibre sheets and bio-resin, along the Jurassic coast to improve safety by providing real-time sea state monitoring.
Aquaculture - the process of sustainably breeding, rearing and farming fish and other types of seafood - is a relatively fledgeling sector that may be significantly aided by technological innovations.
The engineering firm's CEO James Thomas said he was excited to trial the system with its partners as part of the project.
He said: "We’ve recently developed our first buoy constructed with sustainable materials, which we believe to be first-of-kind, and this is the perfect project for its first deployment. We want to support the Blue Economy by improving access to new and critical data streams with our growing 5G maritime network, but we want to do it without adding more plastic to the oceans and by providing active industry leadership towards decarbonisation and achieving net-zero.”
The buoys livestream and measure the state of the sea 24/7 and relay this information back to users via 5G. The data will include video streams, temperature recordings, and wave height data to be analysed in conjunction with wider project parameters such as oxygen and algae levels.
The company also claims this data will be transferred to analysts at the University of Exeter for research purposes.
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UK Minister for Digital Infrastructure Matt Warman expressed hope at projects such as this in laying the foundations for the net-zero future, adding how important it was for the agricultural sector.
He said: "We’re proud to be backing 5G RuralDorset through our £200 million (€231 million) Testbeds and Trials programme and I look forward to seeing how it can level up coastal communities and position the UK as a world leader in 5G.”
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