Modeling Oyster Farming Activities in Coastal Areas: A Generic Framework and Preliminary Application to a Case Study

Abstract

We present an approach for modeling oyster farming activities under spatio-temporal constraints. Combining an object-oriented geodatabase, a geographic information system and a multi-agent model, the methodology developed here offers a formal framework for analyzing the variability of the conditions in which activities are conducted and for evaluating how production systems adapt to this variability. A prototype specific to the Bay of Bourgneuf (France) was developed to study the spatio-temporal variability of oyster growth according to the quality of coastal waters and the oyster production strategy.