SEADEEP: cutting energy use in EU aquaculture and fisheries
SEADEEP is an EU-funded project developing digital and energy-efficient solutions to help Europe’s aquaculture and fisheries sectors cut energy use and emissions. Aquaculture and small-scale fisheries rely on energy-intensive processes, from recirculating systems to cold storage, at a time when both energy costs and emissions targets are rising.
The project held its in-person kick-off in Copenhagen on 10 and 11 September and is coordinated by IVL. It covers recirculating aquaculture systems (RAS), macroalgae cultivation and small-scale fisheries. SUBMARINER leads communications for the project, meaning the practical tools and findings SEADEEP produces reach the operators and communities who can use them, not just a technical report.
BIOSCALES: the social side of scaling up marine biomass
BIOSCALES is an EU-funded project examining the social dimension of scaling up marine biomass production for food, feed and bio-based materials. Scaling up biomass production is as much a social and policy question as a technical one: local communities, existing users of coastal space and regional policy all shape whether a production model works on the ground.
The project launched with an online kick-off on 1 September, coordinated by the University of Graz. SUBMARINER, together with the University of Gothenburg, represents the Swedish and wider Baltic Sea Region case study, focusing on the social dimension of sustainability assessment and the policy questions around marine biomass production.
SPHERE: designing marine protected areas authorities can implement
SPHERE is an EU-funded project that gives authorities a science-based way to design strict marine protection networks that are ecologically sound, socially workable and ready for formal designation. Marine protected area networks are often designed against ecological criteria alone, then run into resistance when they meet the people who fish, work and live around them.
The project kicks off in Berlin on 16 and 17 September. Its output is a set of designation-ready pilot network blueprints, giving authorities a concrete starting point rather than a set of abstract principles.
Why these new EU blue economy projects matter for the Baltic Sea Region
Taken together, SEADEEP, BIOSCALES and SPHERE address a common thread: the gap between what the blue economy needs to achieve environmentally and what is workable in practice, for businesses, communities and the authorities that regulate them. SUBMARINER’s role across all three, from communications leadership to case study representation, reflects the network’s position as the link between EU-level ambition and regional implementation.
