Taking a long-term view, aquaculture continues to offer the only viable alternative to the continued depletion of the earth's natural fishery resources. The United Nations has estimated that for the entire aquaculture industry to simply keep pace with world population growth, total aquaculture output will have to double in less than fifteen years. By the year 2000, some experts are predicting that farm-raised products may account for as much as 50% of the total world supply of seafood.
To achieve this goal, aquaculture must proceed in a more environmentally conscious manner as greater demands are placed on the earth's natural resources that are so important to aquaculture; land and water. Lessons must be learned from the failures of many aquaculture operations worldwide and solutions must be enacted.
The intensification in the aquaculture effort worldwide over the last decade has clearly exposed the risks associated with culturing aquatic animals. Without question, the intensive methods of aquaculture put a great deal of strain on the surrounding natural ecosystems. The high densities of organisms, high artificial feed inputs and the subsequent generation of heavy organic loads are the primary sources of most of the environmental problems associated with aquaculture. What many farmers fail to appreciate is that the pond environment has a finite capacity to assimilate nutrients and organic matter.
Adding to the problem is the fact that many farmers in developing countries, where most aquaculture production takes place, have rapidly developed aquaculture farming operations with little regard for the environment or neighboring farmers. As is often the case, the abundance of natural resources are taken for granted in these locales. Destruction of mangroves, while much less frequent these days, has been associated with development of shrimp farms in the past. Aquaculture is seen as an opportunity for a better life and these resources are seen as a means to an end.
The shrimp farming industries of China, Taiwan, Thailand, Ecuador and India offer prime examples of what can occur when over-intensification overrides concern for the environment. All of these countries have experienced the serious consequences of unmanaged growth of shrimp farming regions. In some cases, entire industries have failed and millions of dollars in investment have been lost. The vast majority of the production crashes occurring in these countries have been traced to either unsustainable development or improper farm management. China and Taiwan have yet to recover from their devastating industry collapses. Regulation of the aquaculture industry is already occurring in places like Thailand and India.
Environmental issues will continue to play an increasingly important role in the development of aquaculture projects worldwide during 1998 and beyond. At AquaSol, we know that sustainable solutions to these difficult issues do exist. These solutions, if properly implemented, will permit the industry to continue to flourish in a way that will be in harmony with nature.
What is needed by farmers worldwide is a greater understanding of the ecological impacts of unmanaged growth. Fortunately, awareness of the intricate ties to the environment are becoming considerably clearer to many farmers and step are being taken to preserve this vital link. For many, it is simply a matter of self-preservation. By taking no action, they realize that the future of their farm is in jeopardy.
A number of methods are available to minimize the environmental impact and even improve the culture environment at the same time. For starters, all farmers should stay within the bounds of sustainable production levels, given their technical expertise, resources and location. Moderate stocking densities, use of high quality feeds, aeration, pond-based recycling systems, closed recirculating systems, settling ponds, constructed wetlands, integration with more traditional forms of agriculture, minimal use of organic and inorganic fertilizers, biological filtration, organized farming community discharge programs, government mandated monitoring programs and industry-wide self regulations are all important options for sustainable farming in the new millennium.
Settling ponds have proven to be an effective means of reducing source pollution. Recent experimental work in this field is very encouraging. There is even some evidence to support the premise that settling ponds can actually increase productivity in a pond-based water recycling system. In essence, the settling ponds act as a buffer, filtering the water through natural biological means. Filter feeding mollusks such as clams and oysters, algae's such as Gracilaria and fish like tilapia and carp can all thrive in nutrient rich waters of an adjoining water treatment reservoir. New technologies using the natural filtering capacity of floating aquatic plants such as duckweed and water hyacinths are showing promise for filtering out harmful levels of ammonia, phosphorous and other harmful compounds. In essence, a more balanced and sustainable man-made ecosystem is created within the confines of the fish farm.
The downside to the settling pond strategy and water filtration strategies are that they can be costly to build. These strategies also require using and investing in land that could otherwise be farmed directly for shrimp of fish production. As it is with most sustainable solutions for aquaculture, there is a required investment involved that in many cases negatively impacts the bottom line of a company's balance sheet in the short run. Unfortunately, this unstable marriage between corporations seeking profits and the environment has historically resulted in the environment being the loser. This short sighted behavior is detrimental to the company in the long run because the entire pond production ecosystem is eventually effected, putting the future of the company itself in jeopardy. These strategies that we select for our clients can be cost effective long-term solutions if they are properly designed and constructed.
We believe there is a responsibility of all farm's to adhere to their own stringent internal operational guidelines and implement sustainable farming strategies that will have long-term benefits to for the farming operation and their surrounding environment. In this regard, AquaSol, Inc. practices what we preach. For all projects under our control, we make every possible effort to preserve and conserve the surrounding environment of the aquaculture farming operation. We firmly believe that our projects can serve as models for other aquaculture projects worldwide. We encourage you to find out how we can help your existing or proposed farm reach the goal of sustainable aquaculture.
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