13.7 Environmental Impact
301
of the environmental issues associated with the process of starch production from
aquatic resources are then discussed.
13.7.1 Waste Utilization
In the extraction of other biopolymers from algae, the starch is usually seen as
a waste. This starch could be further processed and purified for other applications
such as bioethanol production, where the starch content is relatively lower, and this is
combined with starch from other extraction process to augment the amount of starch
in the feedstock. The biochemistry of starch from aquatic plants and algae is similar to
that of terrestrial crops used in bioethanol production; therefore, combining multiple
sources of starch for bioethanol production should not pose difficulty in processing.
13.7.2 Cultivation of Aquatic Plants and Algae for Starch
Production
Cultivation of some aquatic life forms for the production of biopolymers interferes
with the balance in the food chain as some of these biomass serve as food for other
life within the aquatic system. For example, some fish feed on algae such as U.
ohnoi (Ingle et al. 2018). It is important to have a consideration for the replacement
cycle of these organisms for a truly sustainable marine biorefinery. Furthermore,
to optimize the bioaccumulation of starch, it is often required to vary the environmental condition to stimulate optimal starch accumulation by the aquatic plant or
algae. This could limit the production of starch from aquatic sources to indoor cultivation in controlled environment which could be at increased capital and running
costs. For example a typical indoor photobioreactor for cultivation of microalgae C.
sorokiniana for production of starch under nitrogen starvation using a photobioreactor requires indoor temperature maintained at 25 °C, light intensity at 300 µE m
−2
s
−1 air flow of 0.02 vvm with 2% CO 2 composition in an inorganic Bold basal algae
growth medium (Gifuni et al. 2017). If grown in mariculture, altering the natural
environmental conditions in the open marine or freshwater ecosystem could result
in blooms which have a detrimental effect on the entire aquatic ecosystem, and this
should be prohibited.
13.7.3 Water Consumption
Aquatic plants and algae also have an advantage of, unlike terrestrial crop plants,
not requiring freshwater for cultivation. This is particularly important as freshwater
301
of the environmental issues associated with the process of starch production from
aquatic resources are then discussed.
13.7.1 Waste Utilization
In the extraction of other biopolymers from algae, the starch is usually seen as
a waste. This starch could be further processed and purified for other applications
such as bioethanol production, where the starch content is relatively lower, and this is
combined with starch from other extraction process to augment the amount of starch
in the feedstock. The biochemistry of starch from aquatic plants and algae is similar to
that of terrestrial crops used in bioethanol production; therefore, combining multiple
sources of starch for bioethanol production should not pose difficulty in processing.
13.7.2 Cultivation of Aquatic Plants and Algae for Starch
Production
Cultivation of some aquatic life forms for the production of biopolymers interferes
with the balance in the food chain as some of these biomass serve as food for other
life within the aquatic system. For example, some fish feed on algae such as U.
ohnoi (Ingle et al. 2018). It is important to have a consideration for the replacement
cycle of these organisms for a truly sustainable marine biorefinery. Furthermore,
to optimize the bioaccumulation of starch, it is often required to vary the environmental condition to stimulate optimal starch accumulation by the aquatic plant or
algae. This could limit the production of starch from aquatic sources to indoor cultivation in controlled environment which could be at increased capital and running
costs. For example a typical indoor photobioreactor for cultivation of microalgae C.
sorokiniana for production of starch under nitrogen starvation using a photobioreactor requires indoor temperature maintained at 25 °C, light intensity at 300 µE m
−2
s
−1 air flow of 0.02 vvm with 2% CO 2 composition in an inorganic Bold basal algae
growth medium (Gifuni et al. 2017). If grown in mariculture, altering the natural
environmental conditions in the open marine or freshwater ecosystem could result
in blooms which have a detrimental effect on the entire aquatic ecosystem, and this
should be prohibited.
13.7.3 Water Consumption
Aquatic plants and algae also have an advantage of, unlike terrestrial crop plants,
not requiring freshwater for cultivation. This is particularly important as freshwater