The University of Maine held an open house Friday for its Sustainable Aquaculture Workforce and Innovation Center, a 14,200-square-foot research and training facility on the Orono, Maine, campus.
The center has a total budget of $11 million, funded through congressionally directed spending secured by U.S. Sens. Susan Collins and Angus King and a state appropriation, according to the university's project page. The university's Aquaculture Research Institute runs the facility.
Students will train on commercial-scale tank systems built for different life stages of fish, according to a university construction update. Faculty, students and industry partners will use the center for applied research in fish health, nutrition, new species and sustainable production practices.
The facility also supports land-based fish farming research, including salmon, according to Bangor television station WABI. Matt Hawkyard, an associate professor and finfish nutritionist at the university, told WABI that fish should be in the building and programs fully moved in by next March.
