Operational Management Plan 2015

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1 Introduction

Oceanic Technologies Pty Ltd ABN 26 155 012 310 was formally incorporated 5th
January 2012 and now trades as Noosa Eco-Marine. The company has formed to
take advantage of the growing market in aquaculture particularly in the premium
product of farmed table fish such as giant grouper and gold spot cod delivered live to
market. These live fish command a significant price premium.

Oceanic Technologies Pty Ltd has developed its experience and skills over a period
of 20 years and has now piloted the reliable production of healthy saleable live fish
via its unique small R.A.S. (Recirculated Aquaculture System) 6 x 2.5m tanks. This
system allows for the intensive production of farm fish indoors and represents a
substantial input saving in land cost and allows Oceanic Technologies Pty Ltd to
operate with extreme flexibility, enhanced quality control and reliable production
output.

The uniquely effective Oceanic Technologies Pty Ltd system allows for reliable
production capacity utilising pure oxygen injection, advanced electronic management
and the use of specifically designed filtration systems to ensure water quality. All
operational requirements are therefore able to be kept within narrow parameters for
ideal fish growing conditions. The system also delivers and exceeds all
environmental operating conditions with close to zero effluent discharge, which can
therefore be discharged into normal municipal sewage outlets. In addition, the
system minimises overall energy and feed inputs and achieves 1metric ton (1000
Kg) output per annum for each 2.5m tank.

The intention of Oceanic Technologies Pty Ltd is now build on its established
processes and to expand production to 12 tonne per annum (2015/2016) utilising a
larger R.A.S modelled on the current technology plus installing two additional 40,000
L grow tanks. Following reliable production over a 24 month period an additional 2 x
40, 000 L of grow tanks will be installed delivering 30 tonne per annum (2018/2019)
live fish to market. Following reliable production for a further 24 months an additional
4 x 40,000 L of grow tanks and filtration system will be installed in the adjoining shed
to bring total production to 60 tonne per annum.

2 Product Overview
2.1 Species and Quantity of Fish

   1) Giant Grouper (Epinephelus lanceolatus)
   2) Barramundi (Lates calcarifer)
   3) Flowery Cod (Epinephelus fuscoguttatus)
   4) Cobia (Rachycentron canadum)

Not all of the species listed above will be grown at once however the Giant Grouper
is our preferred species as we have experience growing these and find them to be a
hardy fast growing fish that gets a high price when sold both chilled and live.
Barramundi will be introduced into the system first to test the system for any faults.
Barramundi fingerlings are readily obtainable, hardy and cheap to buy, this makes
them an ideal choice for this purpose. We will continue to stock the system with

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barramundi in the future because there is an existing market with demand for the fish
both Live and chilled product. Trials will be carried out on the Flowery Cod and Cobia
to see if they are a viable species to grow in a RAS.

Only 2 species of fish will be grown in our planned 30 tonne system, when we
expand to 60 tonne we will take on a third species.

2.2 Fingerling Source.

The Giant Grouper will be sourced from Finfish Enterprises hatchery facility in Cairns
(Formally Northern Fisheries Centre).
The Barramundi will be sourced from Robarra in South Australia.
The Flowery Cod will be sourced from Finfish Enterprises hatchery facility in Cairns
(Formally Northern Fisheries Centre).
The Cobia will be sourced from Bribie Island Research Centre.

2.3 Stocking Densities

In past trials we have found that the Giant Grouper fill the entire water column
allowing us to have an average stocking density of 75 Kg/m3 with a maximum
density of 100kg/m3. With past experience on other farms we have found that
Barramundi can also be grown using the same stocking densities as the Giant
Grouper.

The stocking densities of the Cobia and Flowery Cod are unknown until we do our
own trial on the stocking densities. Our experience with Gold spot cod which are
similar in behaviour to the Flowery Cod has shown us that they can’t be grown at
densities as high as Giant Grouper and Barramundi as they like to sit on the bottom
of the tank which limits their stocking densities in tanks with low diameter to depth
ratios like our grow tanks.

Bribie Island research Centre lead scientists have told us they believe a maximum
stocking density of 40kg/m3 should be achievable with the Cobia which is very low
but they grow twice as fast as the other species so this means we can get 2 crops to
1 of the other species which should make up for the low achievable stocking
densities.

3 Location
Our proposed facility is located at 15 Production Street, Noosaville Queensland. Our
company currently secured a 3 x 3 x 3 lease on shed 4/15 Production St and the
first right of refusal on the adjoining shed 3. The property has town water supply,
Single phase and 3 phase power supply and connection to municipal sewer.

4 Farming Methods and Aquaculture Equipment
4.1 Farming Method

At our chosen site we will be operating a Recirculating Aquaculture System (RAS).
The fish will be cultured in tanks from 6m3 to 40m3. We will be turning the water

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over in the tanks 1.5 times an hour during feeding and 2 times an hour when feeding
is completed. The effluent water from the grow tanks will go through a 60micron
drum filter then flow into an aboveground sump. From the sump the water will be
pumped through a Protein skimmer where ozone will be injected. The water from the
protein skimmer will then enter a Moving Bed Bio Reactor (MBBR) containing a
mixture of k1 Kaldness biomedia and the new mutag bio chip at a ratio of 1:1. The
water will then flow into the sump where it will be pumped back to the grow tanks.

A Denitrification tank will also be incorporated in the system. The Denitrification tank
will draw raw water from the return pipe from the grow tanks. The Denitrification tank
contains k1 Kaldness bio media and the water is pumped into the bottom of tank and
flows up through the media and then flows out the top into a 200 ltr drum. From the
drum the water is pumped up into the MBBR where any excess Nitrogen (N2) gas
can be gassed off. Waste from the Protein skimmer will be used as the carbon donor
for the de nitrification tank. This waste will be dosed into the de nitrification tank to
keep the ORP between -50-+50 mv any excess waste from the protein skimmer will
be pumped into the waste storage tank.

Discharge water will be drawn from the return pipe from the grow tanks at a rate of
4800ltrs per day per shed so a total of 9600 ltrs per day which equates to 3% of the
system total volume. The drum filter will be washed using fresh water and will be
discharged into the sewer in the early stages. In the early stages the total volume will
only be 160000ltrs so we will use 4800ltrs of system water and 5200ltrs of water to
wash the drum filter screens. As the system grows we will install 2 x 35000ltr settling
tanks which will contain fresh water to wash down the drum filter screens. One tank
will supply the water to clean the drum filter screens while the other tank is settling
the solids out. When the solids are settled (after a 24hr period) the sludge will be
pumped out into the waste storage tank then the tank will be topped up with more
fresh water and used to supply water to the drum filter wash down. When the waste
water from the drum filter is pumped into the settling tank it will be dosed with
Polyacrylamide to act as a flocculent, this will allow the solids to settle to the bottom
of the settling tank where it can be pumped out into the waste storage tank.

4.2 Aquaculture Equipment

      Poly tanks from 6m3 to 40m3
      60micron drum filter
      Protein skimmer
      Moving Bed Bio Reactor (MBBR)
      Denitrification tank

5 Livestock Environment Management and Monitoring
5.1 Water quality parameters will be monitored and recorded as follows

Water          quality Method of testing       Testing regularity     Recording
Parameter                                                             method
PH                      Sensor                 Constant               Computer logged
PH                      Manual                 Weekly                 Hard copy on file

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Ammonia (TAN)            Manual          Weekly              Hard copy on file
Nitrite NO2              Manual          Weekly              Hard copy on file
Nitrate NO3              Manual          Weekly              Hard copy on file
ORP      (Outlet    of   Sensor          Constant            Computer logged
protein skimmer to
control         ozone
output)
ORP (de nitrifying       Sensor          Constant            Computer logged
tank     to    control
carbon          donor
dosing)
Carbon Dioxide CO2       Sensor          Constant            Computer logged
Dissolved Oxygen         Sensor          Constant            Computer logged
Salinity                 Sensor          Constant            Computer logged
Temperature              Sensor          Constant            Computer logged

Form to be used to record water quality manually is in Appendix B

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5.2 Water quality reaction plan

Water         quality Low         High       Emergency Plan
Parameter             setpoint    setpoint
PH                    7.8         8.2        Manually test and adjust with
                                             Hydrated lime to increase PH or
                                             Hydrochloric Acid to decrease PH
Ammonia (TAN)         N/A         1ppm       Inspect grow tanks for dead fish
                                             Inspect Bio filter for correct
                                             operation.
                                             Reduce feed rate equal to the
                                             date of last acceptable ammonia
                                             test. Increase feed rate at slower
                                             rate to allow bio filter bacteria to
                                             grow. If ammonia levels increase
                                             to high levels ensure there is
                                             enough bio media in bio filter.
Nitrite NO2           N/A         1ppm       Check De nitrification tank for
                                             correst dosing of carbon donor
                                             and ORP level correct to ensure
                                             there is no nitrite build up in de
                                             nitrification tank outlet.
                                             Inspect Bio filter for correct
                                             operation.
                                             Reduce feed rate equal to the
                                             date of last acceptable ammonia
                                             test. Increase feed rate at slower
                                             rate to allow bio filter bacteria to
                                             grow. If ammonia levels increase
                                             to high levels ensure there is
                                             enough bio media in bio filter.

Nitrate NO3           N/A         200ppm     Check denitrification for correct
                                             operation. Check for correct ORP
                                             reading. Ensure at 3% of system
                                             water     is  being    discharged.
                                             Decrease feed rate until solution
                                             is found.
ORP     (Outlet   of +300mv       +350mv     If below 300mv check ozone
protein skimmer to                           generator for correct operation
control       ozone                          including ORP Probe. Check
output)                                      oxygen generator that produces
                                             oxygen for the ozone generator.
                                             If above 350mv turn ozone
                                             generator off immediately. Check
                                             ORP probe and recalibrate then
                                             turn on ozone generator and
                                             monitor for correct operation.
ORP (de nitrifying -50mv          +50mv      If below -50mv check dosing
tank to   control                            pump for correct operation and

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carbon         donor                                check Nitrite levels in system
dosing)                                             water to ensure nitrite levels are
                                                    not at high levels. If above +50mv
                                                    check oxygen level in tank to
                                                    ensure it is <2mg/l check flow rate
                                                    to ensure there is a 2hr dwell time
Carbon Dioxide CO2 N/A                20mg/l        Check maintenance log to Ensure
                                                    probe has been recalibrated to
                                                    manufacturers recommendations.
                                                    Check protein skimmer and
                                                    MBBR for correct air flow to
                                                    ensure CO2 is being gassed off.
Dissolved Oxygen       4mg/l          N/A           When low set point triggered turn
                                                    on manual bottled oxygen to feed
                                                    oxygen into emergency diffusers
                                                    in grow tanks immediately. Check
                                                    oxygen generator for correct
                                                    operation. Check water flow is
                                                    sufficient in grow tank that has low
                                                    oxygen. Clean oxygen probe,
                                                    check membrane for damage and
                                                    check maintenance log to ensure
                                                    probe has been calibrated to
                                                    manufacturers recommendations.
Salinity               13ppt          22ppt         Check storage tank to ensure
                                                    supply water is correct salinity
                                                    then adjust accordingly
Temperature            25C            33C           Check heater/ chiller for correct
                                                    operation


6 Biosecurity
6.1 Animal source

Animals should be obtained from disease-free farms or sources only, after
appropriate health testing and disease-free certification by a reputable veterinary
laboratory; disinfect eggs or larvae where appropriate, quarantine (isolate) all animal
introductions from the rest of the farm for an appropriate period of time. The length of
quarantine time depends on the species of aquatic animal and potential disease or
parasite. Contact DPI&F veterinary and extension officers for advice.
b) Seek advice on appropriate preventative treatments for parasites to all introduced
animals while still in quarantine.

6.2 Hygiene

a) Seek advice on the disinfection of eggs or larvae prior to use.
b) Remove sick and dying animals as soon as possible and treat in a quarantine
section or dispose of appropriately, so there is no contamination of the farm animals
or aquatic environment.

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6.3 Record Keeping

a) Record all introductions and disposals of aquatic animals; include their source or
destination.
b) Record all outbreaks of sickness and deaths.
c) Measure and record growth rates.

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6.4 Chemical use

a) Ensure all personnel are aware of the hazards of the chemicals used, and that
they have training on the storage, use and handling of the chemicals used and are
provided with appropriate protection gear to the chemical. This will be clearly stated
at the staff induction process.
b) Comply with the regulations on the use of chemicals in aquaculture. Be aware of
the chemicals registered for use in aquaculture and the need to consult a registered
vet. No antibiotics or feeds containing antibiotics are to be used whatsoever – you
must consult a vet. If you use anything that is not registered or prescribed you will be
in breech of the legislation. Controls over the supply and use of Agvet chemicals in
Queensland are provided for in legislation, in particular the Agricultural and
Veterinary Chemical (Queensland) Act 1994 (Agvet Code), the Chemical Usage
(Agricultural and Veterinary) Control Act 1988 (Chemical Usage Act), Agricultural
Chemicals

     Distribution Control Act 1966 and The Health (Drugs and Poisons) Regulation
        1996 (What Veterinary Surgeons Need to Know).

7.5 Disease

7.5.1 Disease Monitoring

Our RAS will be constantly monitored for any signs of disease by both daily
observation and weekly testing of sample fish. On a weekly basis we intend to take
sample fish from each tank throughout the system and take samples of mucus and
gill cuttings and observe through a microscope any signs of parasites or early signs
of the presents of disease

7.5.2 Disease Identification

If there is any suspicion that there is a disease on the premises you must notify the
Department in accordance with the Disease Notification Procedure. The criterion for
notification of disease is if there is any unusual mortality in conjunction with ANY
TWO of the following criteria:

a) Animals coming to the edge or water surface of the pond/tank/cage.
b) Animals demonstrating unusual swimming patterns.
c) Reduced feeding and failure to thrive.
d) Unusual changes in the physical appearance of the animal such as red or black
colouration of prawn, ulcers or mouldy growth on skin, blackening of skin, pop eye,
erosion of fins and tails, fouling of gills etc.

7.5.3 Disease Management

a) Isolate any animals showing signs of any disease or ectoparasitic infestation to
affected tanks only.
b) Prevent bird, animal, vehicle and human vectors from spreading disease through
the farm/hatchery.

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c) Personnel should work on the healthy animals each day before they have any
contact with the sick ones.
d) Obtain veterinary laboratory assistance to determine the cause(s) of any losses;
always attempt to get a diagnosis.
e) Where appropriate/requested collect sick specimens of affected aquatic animals
for laboratory examination
f) Seek advice from the Department on the destruction, disposal and disinfection
methods for diseased and dead aquatic animals.
g) Chemicals and therapeutics are to be used only on the advice of an aquaculture
veterinarian, and withdrawal times must always be observed.

7.5.4 Disease Emergencies

If you suspect a disease outbreak, there are steps you can take to limit the spread of
the disease and protect healthy animals. As well as advising Fisheries Queensland
of a disease, you should:

      isolate any animals showing signs of disease or infestation in separate ponds
       and tanks
      quarantine all equipment from other ponds and tanks
      prevent birds, animals, vehicles and humans from spreading disease through
       the farm
      tend to healthy animals each day before you have any contact with sick ones
      Collect specimens of affected aquatic animals for laboratory examination fill
       out the Fin Fish Lab exam form (Appendix A) and send to below address.
      Safely dispose of diseased and dead animals, and effluent water.

Biosecurity Sciences Laboratory
Health and Food Sciences Precinct
Specimen receipt (Loading Dock 12)
39 Kessels Road, Coopers Plains Qld 4108
Phone: 07 3276 6062 (Aquatic Pathologist - submission enquiries)
Fax: 07 3216 6620

7.5.5 Disease Notification Procedure

Under Section 100 of the Fisheries Act 1994 ‘A person who knows or reasonably
suspects a fisheries resource or a fish habitat is showing signs of disease, or knows
or reasonably suspects disease may be in fisheries resources or a fish habitat, must
immediately notify the chief executive or an inspector’

An aquaculture licence or permit holder must therefore notify a Fisheries Research
Centre or a Fisheries Extension Officer or the Queensland Boating and Fisheries
Patrol (QB&FP) of the occurrence of, or the possibility of, a disease outbreak.
Officers may be contacted by calling the Call Centre on 13 25 23 Friday (excluding
public holidays) or DPI&F after-hour emergency number 3830 8550 for suspected
exotic disease The Fisheries or QBFP Officer will then contact the designated DPI&F
expert for the particular event and will receive advice on an appropriate course of
action, eg site inspection, sample collection etc. The reporting aquaculturist will then
be advised of this course of action. In instances of disease in freshwater or marine

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aquaculture the regional expert will be: Duty Fish Pathologist (or Laboratory
Manager) Animal Research Institute, Yeerongpilly Department of Primary Industries
and Fisheries TEL: (07) 3362 99471 (w)

7.5.6 Farm Procedures to prevent spread of disease

Foot baths and hand washing facilities will be placed at both of the entries to the
juvenile and grow out system. Foot baths and hand washing facilities will be
available at the entrance to the quarantine system.

If the facility is to be managed by 1 person at any time, the grow out facility and
juvenile system must be maintained before entering the quarantine system. If it is
required to go back into the grow out or juvenile system then the employee must
change into clean clothes and put dirty clothes into laundry baskets supplied. The
employee must wash themselves down with disinfectant wash shoes in foot bath and
then enter the facility.

Water is never to be swapped between systems and discharged; water from
quarantine system must be discarded into approved waste disposal system. Water
can be moved between juvenile and grow out if there are no signs of disease in
either part of the facility.

All employees are to stay away from trucks bringing in replacement water and at no
time are water truck drivers allowed inside the facility.

When loading market sized fish into transport trucks the fish must be taken outside
to be loaded and then the vessels containing the fish are to be washed with chlorine
and left in the sun for 24hrs before bringing back into the facility, at no time are the
delivery drivers allowed into facility.

8 Feed

Feed will be sourced from Big Nutrition in Brisbane. The food they import is Ewos
which is a Norwegian company that has a feed plant in Vietnam where our food is
produced. The food is tested for Land animal based protein so it only contains plant
and marine based protein. We have been using this food in our pilot system and we
have achieved excellent food conversion ratios (FCR) and specific growth rates
(SGR)

9 Waste Management
9.1 Waste Water Management

We have obtained approval from Unity Water trade waste department to discharge
our waste into the sewer connection. This discharge will have analogue monitors to
monitor flow rate and salinity. The information will be accessible by unity water by
GPRS to allow them to monitor the discharge 24/7. We will also be monitoring and
logging the data using our own monitoring system.

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All water to be discharged will be pumped into our 22500ltr waste storage tank
where it will be dosed into the council sewer at a maximum rate of 7l/m to stay under
our 10000ltr / day discharge allowance. A u-trap will be placed in the discharge pipe
with a tap so samples of the waste water can be taken by any regulatory government
departments. The waste water flow rate and salinity will be monitored by inline
sensors and the data logged by our monitoring system, PC’s and remotely by unity
water.

9.2 Mortalities

Mortalities will be kept in our onsite freezer if we have a large mortality event the
dead fish will be loaded into our utility which will be lined with plastic and taken to the
Local Noosa landfill site.

9.3 Fish Escape Prevention

Our intension was to screen the outflow from the facility to the waste storage tank.
The viscosity of this waste will be too low to flow through screens without constant,
serious fowling which will add a large amount of labour cost to keep operational. The
waste will go into the storage tank and be in there for up to 48 hours. Any escape
fish or larvae that enter this anoxic environment would not survive anymore that a
few minutes therefore it would be impossible for fish or larvae to escape this way.
Our RAS being a closed system does not allow the escape of fish and as discussed
if fish do enter the waste tank they will be dead within a few minutes and the bodies
would most likely be consumed by the bacteria that will colonise this storage tank.

10 Water Collection
The input water to top up the system will be trucked in, using our existing transport
truck that has a capacity of 12500ltrs, from Noosa River which is 2.8klm away. The
water is of good quality and is of the correct salinity for our system. We have been
collecting water from Noosa River for our pilot system for the past 3 years and have
found it to be a reliable source of good quality seawater.