| The Canadian Center for the Culture of Microorganisms (CCCM) maintains living specimens of marine phytoplankton, freshwater microalgae and fungal isolates for research, teaching and commercial use.
We are a non-profit facility supported by the Department of Botany at the University of British Columbia. Our facility arose from the amalgamation of three living collections.
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The North East Pacific Culture Collection (NEPCC) is a living collection of marine microalgae containing several hundred isolates with representatives from all of the major algal groups.
> Ordering Cultures [Prices, Shipping, Conditions] > Culturing Information [Medium recipes, Culturing tips] |
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The Freshwater Algal Culture Collection (FWAC) consists of approximately 60 unialgal cultures, largely Chlorophyceae and Cyanophyceae, Xanthophyceae, Euglenophyceae and Chrysophyceae.
> Browse the Freshwater Algal Culture Collection Catalog > Ordering Cultures [Prices, Shipping, Conditions] > Culturing Information [Medium recipes, Culturing tips] > History of the Freshwater Algal Collection
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The Fungal Collection of Dr. Robert Bandoni, Emeritus Professor of Botany at UBC, contains hundreds of strains of fungi and yeast, many of which are unique to the CCCM.
An online version of the Fungal Collection Catalog is not available at this time. Fungal strains are available, however. Please contact the CCCM Curator for further information.
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microalgae
The CCMP – A National Center (USA)
The CCMP is the national marine phytoplankton collection, and it is an integral part of Bigelow Laboratory for Ocean Sciences. The CCMP maintains over 2500 strains from around the world, the preponderance are marine phytoplankters but we also have benthic, macrophytic, freshwater and heterotrophic organisms.
You can search our online catalog for strains using taxonomic, geographic and other parameters. Strain records have (when available):
– collection and isolation information
– culturing medium recipes and growth conditions
– photographs
– GenBank accession link
– collection site map
– link to the taxonomic database Microscope
The CCMP offers a course in phytoplankton culturing techniques and facilities for visiting scientists are available at our laboratories in Boothbay Harbor, Maine.
Source: https://ccmp.bigelow.org/
Seambiotic
Seambiotic’s vision is to become the global leader in development and production of superior quality marine microalgae for the food additives sector and as an energy alternative source.
Seambiotic was initially established to produce and sell Omega 3 fatty acid products from marine microalgae. Seambiotic developed its business model and now presents a very appealing dual purpose application of its technology: Omega 3 and bio-fuels.
Seambiotic will achieve this goal by establishing marine microalgae farms in different locations worldwide using our know-how technology in utilizing power plant resources & wastes for marine microalgae cultivation.
Germany trials carbon-eating algae
Germany is often viewed as one of the most advanced countries in the world when it comes to protecting the environment.
The landscape is dotted with wind turbines and many houses have solar panels on the roof. But Germany is also one of the largest energy consumers in the world with its high-powered economy, and much of that energy comes from coal fired power plants.
Dealing with carbon emissions is a big challenge for energy companies and they are getting creative.
European energy giant Vattenfall has installed a greenhouse next to a small plant in the East German town of Senftenberg where a team of scientists headed by Michael Strzodka is trying a new approach.
They are cultivating green algae which they hope will eat the CO2 from the plant.
Janine Thiele, a microbiologist says the concept is fairly simple: “Microalgae grow with photosynthesis, so they need light, they need CO2 and they need some nutrients like other plants.”
The scientists have large tanks filled with algae and nutrients and they take the CO2 emitted from the power plant and put it in the tanks. The algae then turns the CO2 into clean air.
First tests seem promising, the scientists say, but there are still more questions than answers. Power plants emit other gases aside from CO2, like sulfur, and it is possible the sulfur might kill off the algae or at least impede its growth.
But team leader Michael Strzodka says his main concern is whether the process is economically viable: “The issue is: can we use this with an energy balance? Meaning, we must ensure we don’t use more energy in the process than the algae will give us in concentrated biomass.”
It will take at least two years before Strzodka and his team will be able to answer this question.
He says even if the algae solution works it will only help to clean the emissions from small power plants. Larger ones emit so much CO2 it would take massive amounts of algae to do the same job.
The “Green Mission” project at Senftenberg is still in its early stages. Scientists are testing the effectiveness of different species of microalgae. Their next step will be to examine the best uses for algae biomass. It could be used for energy, as an ingredient in animal feed, or algae lipids could be extracted to produce industrial grease.
Other energy companies, like Germany’s RWE, are also experimenting with the technology.
The scientists at the green house in Senftenberg believe their algae could be a part of a solution to carbon emissions. Vattenfall is also exploring carbon storage technology where emissions are pumped into large tanks and then pressed into geological formations.
Both the algae technology and carbon storage are still years away from having an impact on emissions, but as Germany moves away from nuclear energy, Markus Sauthoff, an executive with Vattenfall says cleaner coal energy will become more important: “As long as there is coal, it will be used — and we can decide how we use it.”
Michael Strzodka and his team of scientists say they are just trying to achieve the next step, a bigger set of algae tanks to expand their research. He says he hopes one day the little green plants might help offer a solution to one of the biggest problems mankind faces today.