MODELING HYDRODYNAMICS AND AQUACULTURE WASTE TRANSPORT IN COASTAL MAINE

Net-pen aquaculture results in the introduction of excess fish food an d fecal matter in coastal waters. These wastes may modify the benthic environment. Mathematical models are developed in this study to simula te tidal and wind-driven currents, waves, and the resulting dispersion of fish food and fecal matter in coastal Maine, a region where limite d modelling studies have been performed. Cobscook Bay and Toothacher B ay in Maine are studied in derail through the use of mathematical mode ls and field data. We find that a systematic, site-specific, step-by-s tep modeling strategy involving the use of numerical models to simulat e the overall hydrodynamic environment in combination with a waste-par ticle transport model can be an extremely powerful method of determini ng a priori whether aquaculture operations will cause high rates of ne t-pen waste accumulation at a particular site.