Bubbles and the battle against biofouling

Bubbly boat berths sound like something worth celebrating - as in popping a cork and raising a glass to.

In actuality, they’re nothing to do with bubbly drink, but they are worth celebrating as what they may well be is a weapon in the battle against biofouling...as an experiment in the Marlborough Sounds is proving. There, a bubble blower has been installed beneath a pontoon to see if the bubbles mitigate biofouling.

The hope is that the disturbance in the water, caused by the bubbles, will prevent damage-causing organisms from attaching to the underneath of marina structures. The damage caused is the accumulation of microorganisms, plants, algae, and small animals in place whether they are not wanted.

Cawthron Institute healthy oceans manager Grant Hopkins says the bubble-blower idea may well be deemed “all very novel”, but it’s bringing in brilliant results.

Hopkins said councils around the country were becoming stricter about fouling levels on boats, but pontoons and marina structures themselves tended to have “a lot of biomass on them”.

Funded by Marine Biosecurity Toolbox, the experiment was the only trial of its kind going on in New Zealand - if not the world - that Hopkins was aware of.

Check out this article to learn more about this fascinating environmental topic.

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