Freshwater Aquaculture Application Development

2009-02-03T16:33:21Z

eXtension Community of Practice (CoP) application Freshwater Aquaculture

1 2. CoP lead contact information
- 1.1 Co-Chairs
2 3. List of CoP Core Leadership Members
3 4. Description of the Community of Practice
4 5. Description of the Community of Interest to be served
5 6. Scope of work for proposed CoP from February 2, 2009 to November 30, 2010.
6 7. Brief description of deliverables for years 2 and 3
7 8. Anticipated date for launch on public eXtension site.
8 9. Resources currently available to this proposed CoP and plans for CoP sustainability.
9 References

2. CoP lead contact information

Co-Chairs

Steeve Pomerleau, Extension Aquaculture Specialist
Aquaculture/Fisheries Center of Excellence, University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff
1200 N. University Drive, Pine Bluff, AR 71601
(870) 575-8139; spomerleau@uaex.edu

Nathan Stone, Extension Fisheries Specialist
Aquaculture/Fisheries Center of Excellence, University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff
1200 N. University Drive, Pine Bluff, AR 71601
(870) 575-8138; nstone@uaex.edu

3. List of CoP Core Leadership Members

Leadership team formation

After aquaculture was selected as a priority program by the 1890 region for the development of a Community of Practice, dynamic aquaculture professionals from across the nation were contacted and invited to lead the development of this new CoP. The leadership team was designed to include aquaculture professionals with extension responsibilities (many with established web-based programs) from the four USDA Regional Aquaculture Center (RAC) regions of the continental United States (North Central, Southern, Northeastern, and Western), from the 1862 and 1890 Land-Grant universities with aquaculture programs, and from states with large freshwater aquaculture industries. Communication and information technology specialists with extensive eXtension experience were also contacted and invited to complement the leadership team.

Subgroup Chairs

Prospective Producers

Dennis McIntosh, Assistant Research Professor & Extension Specialist – Aquaculture
Delaware State University, 1200 N. DuPont Hwy., Dover, DE 19901
(302) 857-6456; dmcintosh@desu.edu

Laura G. Tiu, Senior Research Associate
Ohio State University South Centers, 1864 Shyville Rd, Piketon, OH 45661-9749 (740) 289-2071 ext. 121; tiu.2@osu.edu

Recreational Fish Pond Owners

C. Greg Lutz, Specialist & Professor of Aquaculture
LSU AgCenter, Aquaculture Research Station,
2410 Ben Hur Road, Baton Rouge, LA 70820
(225) 765-2848; glutz@agcenter.lsu.edu

Commercial Producers

Robert Durborow, State Extension Specialist for Aquaculture
Cooperative Extension Facility,Kentucky State University, Frankfort, KY 40601
(502) 597-6581; robert.durborow@kysu.edu

Secondary School Educators

David J. Cline, Extension Specialist – Fisheries
Department of Fisheries and Allied Aquacultures, 203 Swingle Hall
Auburn University, Auburn, AL 36849
(334) 844-2874; clinedj@auburn.edu

Carlos V. Martinez, Assistant in Ornamental Aquaculture
University of Florida, Tropical Aquaculture Laboratory
1408 24th Street SE, Ruskin, FL 33570
813 671 5230 ext. 109; carlosvm@ufl.edu

County Extension Faculty

Gary Fornshell, Multi-County Aquaculture Educator
University of Idaho Extension, 246 Third Avenue East, Twin Falls, ID 83301
(208) 734-9590; gafornsh@uidaho.edu

LaDon Swann, Associate Research Professor
Department of Fisheries and Allied Aquacultures, 203 Swingle Hall
Auburn University, Auburn, AL 36849
(334) 844-4382; swanndl@auburn.edu

Information Technology

Anne Mims Adrian, Associate Director, Information Technology
Alabama Cooperative Extension System & College of Agriculture
Auburn University, Auburn, AL 36849
(334) 844-3507; mimsann@aces.edu

Communications

Carol A. Whatley, Ed.D., Director, Communications and Marketing
Alabama Cooperative Extension System
122 Duncan Hall Annex, Auburn University, AL 36849
(334) 844-5690; whatlca@aces.edu

Administrative Advisors

Dr. Dalton McAfee, Extension Administrator and Dean
School of Agriculture, Research, Extension and Applied Sciences
Alcorn State University, 1000 ASU Drive, #479, Alcorn State, MS 39096
(601) 877-6128; dmcafee@asuextension.com

Dr. Paul D. Coreil, Vice Chancellor and Director
Louisiana Cooperative Extension Service
LSU AgCenter, 102F Efferson Hall, Baton Rouge, LA 70803
(225) 578-6083; PCoreil@agcenter.lsu.edu

CSREES Liaisons

Dr. Gary Jensen, National Program Leader for Aquaculture
U.S.D.A. Cooperative State Research, Education and Extension Service,
Mail Stop 2220, 1400 Independence Avenue S.W., Washington, D.C. 20250-2220
(202) 401-6802; gjensen@csrees.usda.gov

Dr. Maxwell H. Mayeaux, Aquaculture Program Specialist
USDA/CSREES/PAS
Waterfront Centre, Room 3155, 800 9th St., SW, Washington, D.C. 20024
(202) 401-3352; mmayeaux@csrees.usda.gov

4. Description of the Community of Practice

The primary goal of the Freshwater Aquaculture CoP is to provide 24/7 access and distribute unbiased, science-based information on diverse aquaculture topics through a responsive, multi-institutionally supported community of practice. This proposed CoP is restricted to freshwater aquaculture topics and assistance, but can be expanded in the future as warranted to include marine aquaculture.

Aquaculture is broadly defined as the cultivation of aquatic organisms under controlled conditions. It comprises a large diversity of species, culture systems, science disciplines and production levels (hobbyist to commercial operations). The farm-gate value of aquaculture products sold in the United States was $1.09 billion in 2005 (NASS 2006). Major freshwater culture species include catfish, trout, crawfish, hybrid striped bass, tilapia, various sport fish, and a multitude of ornamental fish species. The Community of Practice represents a broad array of aquaculture expertise in disciplines, species, and production systems. The Community of Practice encompasses state aquaculture extension specialists, research faculty, county extension educators, and other aquaculture professionals.

Many Land-Grant and Sea Grant universities have aquaculture programs, as does the USDA Agricultural Research Service (ARS). A tight-knit community of Extension personnel and researchers work together in support of U.S. aquaculture producers. In some states, universities also provide fish diagnostic and water quality analyses services, either through Extension programs or Veterinary Schools.

Aquaculture research and Extension faculty in the United States have a long history of working together on regional projects through the five USDA Regional Aquaculture Centers (RACs). For example, the southern region has published 189 fact sheets developed by 178 authors (http://srac.tamu.edu). The RACs have also supported the National Aquaculture Extension Workshops that have been held every 4-5 years. The first such workshop was held in Arkansas in 1992, and the fourth and most recent meeting was in Cincinnati, in 2007. These national workshops attract Land-Grant and Sea Grant agents, specialists and advisors with aquaculture outreach responsibilities.

In the southern region, some 98 researchers and Extension scientists have participated in one or more of the annual meetings of the Southern Extension and Research Activity Information Exchange Group (SERA-IEG-9). The objectives of SERA-IEG-9 are “1) to bring together on an annual basis, research scientists and extension specialists from a diversity of disciplinary backgrounds who share a common interest in warmwater aquaculture; 2) to exchange current information on the status of new research findings; 3) to gain a regional perspective to current relevant problems; and 4) to consider joint activities that might be proposed.”

Among the 1890 Land-Grant Institutions, Virginia State University, Kentucky State University, Langston University, Delaware State University, University of Maryland - Eastern Shore, North Carolina A&T State University, Fort Valley State University, Lincoln University, West Virginia State University, and the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff all have aquaculture programs or personnel active in the field.

Aquaculture professionals typically participate in the annual meetings of the U.S. Aquaculture Society (a chapter of the World Aquaculture Society). These annual “Aquaculture America” meetings are held jointly with the National Aquaculture Association (NAA, a major producer association). The Fish Culture Section of the American Fisheries Society is an associate sponsor. Aquaculture scientists also work closely with the various producer associations, such as the NAA, Catfish Farmers of America, the American Tilapia Association and U.S. Trout Farmers Association.

State-level aquaculture professionals also form part of the Community of Practice. Members of the National Association of State Aquaculture Coordinators work in support of aquaculture producers in their respective states. In many states, the departments responsible for natural resources (e.g., Arkansas Game and Fish Commission) maintain hatcheries and fish production facilities. State personnel working in these agencies also can contribute as part of the Community of Practice. Many state-level producer organizations and members of these organizations also form part of the community.

Plan to make the CoP National in Scope and to increase total CoP membership

Aquaculture species and culture systems vary with location and climate with some areas of concentration but mostly wide dispersal across the nation. Pertinent laws and regulations also vary among states and change regularly. An effective CoP for this situation must be national in scope and effort supported by strong state programs and regional networks.

In developing this application, we reached out to aquaculture professionals in the various regions and aquaculture programs across the country, to create a leadership team that makes the Community truly national. Four of the five USDA Regional Aquaculture Center regions (North Central, Southern, Northeastern, and Western) are represented by the current leadership team and four team members sit on the USDA-CSREES/NOAA Sea Grant National Aquaculture Extension Steering Committee. The experience and expertise of the team reflects the diversity of U.S. aquaculture and the CoP.

We plan to increase national CoP membership through:

a) E-mail invitations through the aquaculture list-serve maintained by the National Program Leader- Aquaculture (Aqua_Ext Mail Group News).

b) Propose that the Freshwater Aquaculture CoP become a project of the USDA-CSREES/NOAA Sea Grant National Aquaculture Extension Steering Committee (NAESC). Four members of the CoP leadership team currently serve on this committee. NAESC was created to improve research-extension integration and support extension through enhanced collaborations, novel tactics, and bold strategies of direct benefit to the U.S. aquaculture extension community and its diverse national constituency. The Committee members represent each of the five USDA-CSREES regional aquaculture centers, NOAA Sea Grant Aquaculture Theme Team, 1890 institutions, and National Association of County Agricultural Agents. The NAESC will meet next on February 15, 2009.

c) Invitations to colleagues and other educators at universities with established aquaculture programs, including the 1890 Land-Grant Institutions. Active programs supporting aquaculture producers now exist at many 1890 Land-Grants. Outreach efforts encouraging the use of eXtension are particularly important to achieve digital inclusion, especially among rural and minority communities (Elbert and Alston 2005).

d) We will seek support from the U.S. Aquaculture Society, a chapter of the World Aquaculture Society and the Fish Culture Section of the American Fisheries Society, both formally and through contacting individual members of these professional societies.

e) The leadership team will promote the community of practice through presentations at the annual Aquaculture America conferences and other professional meetings. Promotion material on the launch of the Freshwater Aquaculture CoP will also be distributed to all registered participants of the Aquaculture 2010 conference on March 2nd in San Diego, California.

CoP leadership and management plan

Initial members of the CoP leadership team will function as an executive committee prioritizing and coordinating CoP activities and content development until December 31, 2010. Subsequently, CoP membership will elect a 9-member executive committee of varying one and two-year terms. Thereafter, all committee members will be elected for 2-year terms, allowing for overlap and continuity within the executive committee. The executive committee will be composed of two Co-Chairs and seven Subgroup Chairs (Prospective Producers, Recreational Fish Pond Owners, Commercial Producers, Secondary School Educators, County Extension Faculty, Information Technology, and Communications). The CoP will be open, transparent, fluid and flexible to allow members to assume leadership roles within the CoP.

Number of face to face meetings

The CoP leadership team will meet face-to-face once a year at the annual Aquaculture America conference of the US Aquaculture Society:
- Aquaculture America 2009, February 15-19, Seattle, Washington.
- Aquaculture 2010, March 2-5, San Diego, California.

Audio and/or web meetings planned

The CoP leadership team will meet monthly by web audio conferencing until the CoP launch on public eXtension site in 2010. Subsequently, the CoP leadership team will meet by web audio conferencing quarterly as well as on an as needed basis for special circumstances.

Methods to achieve the CoPs continued productivity

The CoP will encourage its membership to integrate support for the CoP educational products and programs into their annual Plan of Work. The CoP will continue to recruit new members through list-serves, professional organizations such as the U.S. Aquaculture Society and National Association of County Agricultural Agents, and through marketing and promotion of the CoP. The executive committee of the CoP will coordinate planning and development of grants, but all members will be encouraged to identify granting opportunities, as well as to participate in developing or even directing applications for grants, contracts, and other external support.

5. Description of the Community of Interest to be served

Our community of interest can be divided into five major groups: prospective producers, recreational fish pond owners, commercial aquaculture producers, secondary school educators, and county Extension faculty that provide support in aquaculture at the county/local level.

Prospective producers

Aquaculture has been one of the fastest growing components of U.S. agriculture. Despite huge interest, starting an aquaculture operation is not something to be entered into lightly as there is a steep learning curve. Spending time thoroughly researching aquaculture before becoming involved can enhance the success of a prospective aquaculture operation. Hence, a primary audience for the aquaculture CoP is individuals seeking research-based information on getting started in aquaculture, business planning, aquaculture species, culture systems, best management practices, alternative enterprises, and aquaculture products. We anticipate that many in this audience are currently unfamiliar with Cooperative Extension. The CoP will use the vast network of aquaculture programs in the US as well as the web-based aquaculture network center AquaNic (www.aquanic.org) to lead prospective producers to this site. On the site, the CoI will be able to access introductory aquaculture information through educational products and programs designed to enhance the ability to make informed decisions regarding aquaculture in the US.

Recreational fish pond owners

This CoI is a geographically and socio-economically diverse audience throughout the continental United States. Farm ponds provide a valuable source of recreation and family food. Conservatively, there are over 2 million constructed farm ponds in the United States (Tuttle 2003) and the total number of all ponds (natural and constructed) could be as high as 3.5 to 4 million. In light of the sheer numbers of clientele throughout the country who either own ponds (or are considering establishing ponds) there is a great need for a centralized source of unbiased information and recommendations relating to managing ponds. Pond owners normally seek information on fish population management, aquatic weed control, and water quality management. In the past, most pond owners were farmers, familiar with Extension. However, with changing land use patterns, farmland around urban areas has been developed for housing and the number of ponds in urban areas is on the rise. Aquaculture Extension personnel now receive many recreational pond questions from non-traditional clientele.

Commercial producers

The 2005 Census of Aquaculture (NASS 2006) identified 4,309 farms raising aquaculture products, with a total annual farm-gate value of $1.1 billion. The majority of aquaculture operations are small family farms or businesses: 44% of these operations generate annual farm-gate sales of less than $25,000, and 69% of farms sold less than $100,000 annually. The CoP will be a trusted informational resource for producers. While farmers in all states will be targeted, the need is especially great in states and territories with no or limited programs in aquaculture. Aquaculture production occurs in all states except Nevada, but only four states have annual farm-gate sales exceeding $100 million.

Most commercial producers already have a good understanding of the biological and physiological constraints of the species they are culturing and of the limitations of their culture system. However, commercial producers may not always be up to date on emerging issues such as new infectious diseases or new regulations affecting their business. National organic standards for aquaculture products are being developed as well as other federal programs and new regulations. Farmers need a recognized source of timely and accurate information on those issues that may affect their business.

Economics and marketing are other areas where commercial fish farmers may need information and support. Information on financial management and analysis is especially needed, as most aquaculture farms are small family operations. Farmers seek help in evaluating their operations to improve efficiencies. As an example, an Extension program at University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff currently provides support in aquaculture economics ( http://www.uaex.edu/aqfi/extension/aquaculture/economics ) and this will be expanded on the eXtension site.

To engage the CoI with the educational products and programs, the CoP will send announcements by emails to members of various national producer associations such as the US Trout Farmers Association (www.ustfa.org), the American Tilapia Association, the Catfish Farmers of America (www.catfishfarmersamerica.org), and the National Aquaculture Association (www.thenaa.net), which is “a U.S. producer-based association dedicated to the establishment of national programs that further the common interest of its membership, both as individual producers and as members of the aquaculture industry.”

Secondary school educators

Aquaculture like agriculture is a complex subject area with numerous facets for potential study. A number of secondary agriculture, science and math teachers have realized this fact and have begun to integrate aquaculture into their curriculum. Mengel (1999) estimated that 2600 out of 11,000 high school programs teaching agriculture education provided more than 36,000 students with hands-on opportunities in aquaculture. He goes on to say that more than 100,000 students annually are introduced to aquaculture annually through exposure to these programs. Aquaculture is an excellent teaching tool because it easily integrates many disciplines including biology, math, physics, chemistry and economics. Growing fish, aquatic plants, and other living things in the classroom creates a living laboratory and promotes daily hands-on experiences that enrich the learning environment. It makes learning practical, experiential, and enjoyable for teachers and students.

Ongoing efforts to support this community of teachers interested in aquaculture include the development of the National Aquaculture Educators Network (NAEN) which currently has approximately 220 members of which about ½ are secondary educators. A recent survey of 61 of these teachers representing 13 states indicated that 86% of them use recirculating aquaculture systems to grow tilapia, koi, and striped bass along with a variety of other species. Fifty-nine percent of the teachers indicated that they use internet teaching resources “often” or “almost always” and 76% of them were interested in more internet-based teaching tools. Nearly all of the teachers used hands-on activities and 100% were interested in more of these being developed. The top curriculum priorities among the teachers were water quality, production and the nitrogen cycle, followed by diseases and nutrition.

Analysis of Auburn University’s popular aquaculture information website, ALEARN.info, for the year 2008 reveals that of the sites’ 86,568 total visitors 62,953 (72.7%) visited pages in the Education section. ALEARN stands for Alabama, Education, Aquaculture, Recreational fishing and Natural resources. The site is a jointly supported by the Alabama Cooperative Extension System, Auburn University’s Department of Fisheries and Allied Aquacultures and AU’s College of Agriculture. The education section of the web site is designed to provide support for teachers currently or interested in using aquaculture in the classroom and is managed by David Cline who is on the leadership team. A Google search for aquaculture lesson plans yields 75,100 results and places the Alearn site’s lesson plans page in the #1 slot. The top areas of interest within the education section identified by the analysis were; aquaponics (the integration of aquaculture and hydroponics) and the use of recirculating aquaculture systems. This topic area received 53,780 page views within just the top five pages in the education section.

This information corresponds to data from an analysis of the aquanic.org web site (the largest web repository for aquaculture information receiving nearly 2 million visitors and 5.5 million page view in 2008). Among the top downloads from that site were 3 recirculating aquaculture system publications with a combined 32,707 downloads. The top 5 publications downloaded from aquanic.org were:

- Calculating area and volume of ponds and tanks. (36,846 downloads)
- Using grass carp in aquaculture and private impoundments. (29,028 downloads)
- Measuring dissolved oxygen concentrations in aquaculture ponds. (26,635 downloads)
- Crawfish farming: Aquaculture curriculum module. (23,907 downloads)
- Fish disease: Ich.(18,168 downloads)

It cannot be determined how many of visitors downloading these files were teachers but it does attest to the nature of the information they were willing to spend time downloading. A large portion of the crawfish farming curriculum module were likely teachers as it is a specialized publication targeted to this audience. Very few teachers have any formal training in aquaculture and often find the internet the quickest method to gather information for use in their classroom. There is also distinct lack of professional development opportunities for educators to improve their aquaculture teaching capacity.

The CoP will utilize the National Aquaculture Educators Network (NAEN), along with other list serves to engage the CoI with educational products and programs and direct them to the best of the best information selected for inclusion on the eXtension web pages.

County Extension faculty

Throughout the country Extension personnel field numerous calls and email inquiries related to aquaculture and pond management on a daily basis. However, there are a limited number of Extension personnel with aquaculture expertise and the vast majority of County Extension educators have no formal training in aquaculture or pond management. The development of a freshwater aquaculture CoP using the eXtension interface will serve as a means to meet the information needs of this CoI. The CoP will provide professional development opportunities through on-line courses as well as technical support to county faculty. Harder and Linder (2008a, 2008b) found generally positive perceptions of eXtension among Texas county Extension agents although their research suggests that our marketing campaign should target agents in particular, to raise awareness and encourage agent utilization of eXtension resources. The CoP will use the aquaculture list-serve maintained by the National Program Leader- Aquaculture and the County Agent magazine of the National Association of County Agricultural Agents to engage the CoI with the educational products and programs.

6. Scope of work for proposed CoP from February 2, 2009 to November 30, 2010.

While the aquaculture extension community has a long history of working together and sharing information and resources (e.g., periodic national aquaculture extension conferences, regional aquaculture center projects), the development of an eXtension community of practice in aquaculture is a new undertaking. The first task will be to expand the CoP to ensure that wide representation of all aspects of the aquaculture industry is included and are engaged in this effort.

In its first year, the CoP will be able to quickly generate and publish a minimum of 250 quality information pages by moving/linking existing research-based, peer-reviewed aquaculture information and educational programs to the new eXtension virtual educational environment. We will attempt to work closely with USDA Regional Aquaculture Centers and the developers of the Aquatic Information Network Center (http://aquanic.org), a current web storehouse for aquaculture information, to ensure complimentary efforts.

FAQ’s – A minimum of 100 FAQs will be published by having each member of the CoP contribute 15 FAQs and answers related to their field of expertise to the FAQ database. The entries submitted will be reviewed by a committee of at least 3 persons within that specialty prior to going live on eXtension. New FAQ's will be developed as driven by the feedback from the original FAQ's as well as Ask the Expert questions posted by the CoI.

Protocol for ask the expert answers – Questions received that are not addressed by the FAQs will be routed to an expert within the CoP. Each member of the CoP will be asked to voluntarily identify their specific areas of knowledge from a list generated by the CoP leadership committee. Areas of specialty will include, fish health, small farm production, commercial production, recreational pond management, nutrition and feeds, reproduction, production methods (pond, cage, raceway, closed systems), and various freshwater aquaculture species (catfish, crawfish, bait fish, perch, tilapia, trout, etc.).

Prospective producers

A minimum of 20 FAQs and 50 basic information pages addressing general aquaculture topics for beginners will be created, reviewed and published. Topics will include: getting started in aquaculture, aquaculture in the U.S., business planning for aquaculture, overview of aquaculture systems, species selection, and introduction to water quality management. Additional on-line tools (such as area and volume calculators for ponds and tanks) will be incorporated to the educational content in an efficient manner.

Recreational fish pond owners

A minimum of 20 FAQs and 50 basic information pages addressing recreational fish pond owner issues such as fish population management, aquatic weed control, and water quality management will be created, reviewed, and published. Fish stocking recommendations for small impoundments from each state will also be compiled, reviewed and published.

Commercial producers

The emphasis will be on providing research-based information in three main areas of interest for commercial producers: 1) important infectious diseases, 2) Economics, marketing, and financial management of aquaculture business, and 3) emerging issues of importance to commercial producers such as new rules and regulations. A minimum of 20 FAQs and 50 basic information pages addressing those topics will be created, reviewed, and published. Financial tools such as pro-forma budget spreadsheets and cash flow simulators will also be published and made available for download. A minimum of 6 news alerts on emerging issues affecting commercial producers will also be published. The CoP plans to become a nationally recognized source of timely and accurate information for producers nationwide.

Secondary school educators

The freshwater aquaculture CoP will support this CoI by migrating/linking the best targeted materials and publications from the ALEARN.info web site along with others to the eXtension web site. A minimum of 20 FAQs and 50 basic information pages on aquaculture teaching tools available for high school agricultural science programs will be published. Two web based professional development opportunities for these teachers will be produced through webinars to visually demonstrate two new hands-on activities.

County Extension faculty

A minimum of 20 FAQs and 50 basic information pages addressing topics most often faced by county agents will be created, reviewed, and published. Most aquaculture related questions asked to county agents come from farmers trying to control fish populations or aquatic weeds in their farm ponds or farmers looking into aquaculture as an alternative farming enterprise. Therefore, the information published to support county extension agents will complement the information published for prospective producers and recreational pond owners. Considering that county agents rarely have formal training in aquaculture, an “Introduction to Aquaculture/Fisheries” online in-service training course will be created for county agents. The course will be adapted from a current online in-service class instructed by a CoP leadership team member at the University of Arkansas Cooperative Extension Service.

7. Brief description of deliverables for years 2 and 3

To keep the site current and the information accurate, the information sheets and FAQs will be continuously updated and revised. A minimum of 125 and 60 new information sheets will also be added in year-2 and Year-3, respectively. Selected questions and answers generated through “Ask the Expert” will be added to the list of FAQs. Additionally, new FAQs will be written to achieve a minimum of 50 and 25 new FAQs to be published in year-2 and Year-3, respectively. The new information sheets and FAQs will be based on the needs of each CoI.

A minimum of four educational webinars will be produced annually, where targeted CoI will be invited to participate. The first quarterly webinar will target secondary school educators. Webinars will also be a good tool to discuss and educate commercial producers on new emerging issues of importance to this CoI.

In year-2, a minimum of three online classes or training modules will be published. Two training modules will target secondary school educators for in-classroom use. The third training module of year-2 entitled “Management of Small Impoundments” will target county Extension agents and recreational fish pond owners. In year-3, a minimum of four online training modules will be published. The first module, entitled “Introduction to Catfish Farming”, will target county Extension agents and prospective aquaculturists. The second module, entitled “Introduction to Baitfish Farming," will also target county Extension agents and prospective aquaculturists. The third, entitled “Financial Management of Aquaculture Businesses” will target commercial aquaculture producers. The forth training modules will target secondary school educators.

8. Anticipated date for launch on public eXtension site.

The CoP will be launched on the public eXtension site on March 1st, 2010, just before the opening of the Aquaculture 2010 conference on March 2nd in San Diego, California. Promotion material on the launch of the Freshwater Aquaculture CoP will be distributed at the meeting.

9. Resources currently available to this proposed CoP and plans for CoP sustainability.

Numerous online resources are currently available to the CoP for content development. The CoP will incorporate and link existing research-based, peer-reviewed aquaculture information and educational programs to the new eXtension virtual educational environment. For example, there are over 320 peer-reviewed Extension publications produced by the five USDA-CSREES Regional Aquaculture Centers. Online aquaculture resources currently available include some of the following:

Alabama Education in Aquaculture (ALEARN) http://www.alearn.info
American Tilapia Association http://ag.arizona.edu/azaqua/ata.html
Aquaculture Network Information Center (AquaNIC) http://aquanic.org
Aquaplant http://aquaplant.tamu.edu
FAO aquaculture http://www.fao.org/fishery
FDA Seafood http://www.cfsan.fda.gov/seafood1.html
National Aquaculture Association http://www.thenaa.net
National Association of State Aquaculture Coordinators (NASAC) http://www.nasac.net
NOAA Aquaculture Info Center http://www.lib.noaa.gov/docaqua/frontpage.htm
North Carolina Cooperative Extension Trout Page http://haywood.ces.ncsu.edu/content/TroutInformationandLinks
North Central Regional Aquaculture Center (NCRAC) http://www.ncrac.org
Northeastern Regional Aquaculture Center (NRAC) http://www.nrac.umd.edu
Seafood Network Information Center (SeafoodNIC) http://www-seafood.ucdavis.edu
Southern Regional Aquaculture Center (SRAC) http://www.msstate.edu/dept/srac
Thad Cochran National Warmwater Aquaculture Center (NWAC) http://www.msstate.edu/dept/tcnwac
Twin Falls County Extension Office http://extension.ag.uidaho.edu/twinfalls
UC Davis http://aqua.ucdavis.edu
UAPB Aquaculture/Fisheries Center http://www.uaex.edu/aqfi
US Aquaculture Society http://www.was.org/usas
USDA APHIS Aquaculture http://www.aphis.usda.gov/animal_health/animal_dis_spec/aquaculture
USDA Economic Research Service http://www.ers.usda.gov/Data/Aquaculture
USDA National Agricultural Library http://www.nal.usda.gov
USEPA Aquaculture http://www.epa.gov/oecaagct/anaquidx.html
US Trout Farmers Association http://www.ustfa.org
Water Gardens http://www.ccenassau.org/hort/html/water_gardens.html
Western Regional Aquaculture Center (WRAC) http://www.fish.washington.edu/wrac
West Virginia University Extension Service http://www.wvu.edu/~agexten/aquaculture
World Aquaculture Society http://www.was.org

The CoP plan to collaborate and add outreach value to established programs such as the five USDA-CSREES Regional Aquaculture Centers, which mission “to support aquaculture research, development, demonstration, and extension education to enhance viable and profitable U.S. aquaculture production to benefit consumers, producers, service industries, and the American economy” supports the goal of this aquaculture CoP. Collaboration will also be established with the web-based aquaculture network center AquaNIC (www.aquanic.org) , and the National Aquaculture Educators Network, an on-line resource for secondary schools and college students. The CoP will be a valuable integrator across numerous programs to leverage informational resources through this multi-institutional long-term vision collaborative effort.

Once established it is anticipated that the Freshwater Aquaculture CoP will become a central web resource for the dissemination of information to the aquaculture community. After a quality track record has been established we will approach the USDA Regional Aquaculture Centers, the U.S. Aquaculture Society, and the various producer organizations for financial support to assist with the continued maintenance of this CoP. In addition, members of the leadership team will endeavor to seek extramural funding through granting programs to support this effort. The CoP will also consult with Jeffrey A. Bastuscheck (Contract and Grant Specialist, Alabama Cooperative Extension System) to provide support in pursuit for further funding to sustain the CoP.

References

Elbert, C. D., and A. J. Alston. 2005. An evaluative study of the United States Cooperative Extension Service’s role in bridging the digital divide. Journal of Extension 43(5):5RIB1.

Harder, A., and J. R. Linder. 2008. County extension agent’s perceptions of eXtension. Journal of Extension 46(3):3FEA2.

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Watching: Freshwater Aquaculture Application Development

Freshwater Aquaculture Application Development

Contents

2. CoP lead contact information

Co-Chairs

3. List of CoP Core Leadership Members

Leadership team formation

Subgroup Chairs

Prospective Producers

Recreational Fish Pond Owners

Commercial Producers

Secondary School Educators

County Extension Faculty

Information Technology

Communications

Administrative Advisors

CSREES Liaisons

4. Description of the Community of Practice

Plan to make the CoP National in Scope and to increase total CoP membership

CoP leadership and management plan

Number of face to face meetings

Audio and/or web meetings planned

Methods to achieve the CoPs continued productivity

5. Description of the Community of Interest to be served

Prospective producers

Recreational fish pond owners

Commercial producers

Secondary school educators

County Extension faculty

6. Scope of work for proposed CoP from February 2, 2009 to November 30, 2010.

Prospective producers

Recreational fish pond owners

Commercial producers

Secondary school educators

County Extension faculty

7. Brief description of deliverables for years 2 and 3

8. Anticipated date for launch on public eXtension site.

9. Resources currently available to this proposed CoP and plans for CoP sustainability.

References