In a sprawling greenhouse in the northern Nevada desert, tilapia and tomatoes are being farmed in a circle-of-life partnership. The Dayton Valley Aquaponics uses a supermarket-sized building on land where cattle used to graze to grow tomatoes using fish waste nutrients while leaving cleansed water to recycle back to tilapia tanks.
“There’s more dissolved oxygen when there’s more water clarity, and that equals more (beneficial) omega-3 fatty acids in the fish,” said Trevor Birba, company founder and business manager. “It’s part of managing the livestock well and humanely.”
Pairing tilapia and tomatoes might seem offbeat, even bizarre, in a place with low rainfall, scouring winds, roasting summers and winter snows that can persist into June. But Birba called the environment ideal.
“We get over 300 days a year of good strong sun,” Birba said. “Even in the controlled environment of the greenhouse, 90 percent of the light still comes from the sun directly. Nothing does the job as well as the sun.”
Read more at apnews.com