Coastal Zone

Trends in Aquaculture

Although many aquaculture projects have been developed that have provided significant economic and social benefits with a negligible environmental impact there are several aquaculture industries, most notably the shrimp farming in certain Asian countries, that have significantly damaged the local ecosystems. These ventures have significantly damaged aquaculture's public image. For aquaculture to become widely accepted it must address this issue.

The main trend in aquaculture is towards sustainability. This issue of sustainability is likely to change, in many cases, how aquaculture is practiced and what forms are desirable. One of the important realizations of this trend is that to achieve full market potential the environment must be protected, as environmental damage results in a decrease in production and possibly the collapse of the industry. The Chinese white shrimp industry is a prime example: environmental damage in the region resulted in devastating diseases decimating the industry. The Chinese white shrimp industry has since almost collapsed. The collapse of the Chinese white shrimp industry is the result of unsustainable practices. Fortunately, the industry is now recovering as the result of the use of more environmentally friendly harvesting techniques such as closed water systems, lower density cultivation, and the use of polyculture systems.

There are a number of issues that must be addressed for sustainability to be achieved. Among these are:

The development of an integrated infrastructure and appropriate management

This system must encourage positive development of aquaculture, administrative and legal framework, institutional linkages, development policies, allocation of resources, zoning, and increased public awareness among other things.

More efficient resource usage

Improved water management involving decreased usage better usage, better feeding practices and less polluting feeds, improved health management, increased integration with agriculture and perhaps genetically improved stocks with specific pathogen resistance are important side issues of more efficient resource usage. Disease control and the development of vaccines is important to establish efficient resource usage.

Avoiding permanent damages

Negative environmental impacts that result in permanent damage must be avoided at all costs. If some environmental damage must occur it must not exceed the rate at which the environment can recover. This involves better site selection, planning, risk assessment, farm design. treatment of wastes, and the development of new more environmentally efficient technologies and techniques.

Establishing a database of aquaculture practices and effective management systems

An adequate working knowledge of the impacts of aquaculture must be developed and a means of communication so that all aquaculture farms can benefit from the information and avoid mistakes made by other farms. This site is an attempt to establish such a database. We welcome any and all input from aquaculturists around the world.

Positive environmental practices should be maximized

Some aquaculture practices such as mollusk and seaweed culture can provide a positive effect on the environment by removing pollution from the local water systems. Systems that reduce pollution and are successfully integrated into the local ecosystem must be maximized.

These and many other topics have been discussed at various aquaculture forums around the world. In response the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) unanimously adopted the Code of Conduct for Responsible Fisheries (CCRF) in 1995 that outlines what are believed to be sustainable aquaculture practices and how they might be achieved. Unfortunately, fish farmers along with government agencies do not know how effective the CCRF's suggestions will be, what it will involve and the economics of its adoption.

Their are other trends within the industry, one of which being a trend from extensive or semi-extensive productions to more intensive levels of production. The impacts of such a trend on the environment can have significant implications on the environment. Intensive farming projects must be managed more carefully than extensive ones and the danger of environmental damage is greater. This trend is the result of increasing demands on the output of aquaculture farms. Despite this trend some farms have flourished, such as salmon culture in Norway, where low-pollution feeds along with vaccines, genetic improvement, lower stock densities, and improved resource management have resulted in increased production, efficiency, and the maintenance of an decent profit margin. Although such practices are not common, many agree that they should be the model upon for further research and development.

As a relatively new industry, many of the wrinkles in aquaculture are still being worked out, and with most industries it must go through a shakedown period in which experience shows what practices are effective and which are not. Hopefully, we have learned much of that lesson already, the task, and general direction of aquaculture in the immediate future is to develop more environmentally friendly facilities and practices and determine species and site specific sustainable yields. If this trend takes hold and continues aquaculture is poised to become a significant food source of the 21 century.