Aquaculture Environmental Impact

In the past,  oceans and seas were often perceived as a limitless source of seafood with an ever increasing supply of fish. However,  with an increasing global population, the limits of both our terrestrial and marine food provisioning systems are becoming poignantly clear. Fish and other marine products are an important source of proteins, but as more than 30% of our fish stocks are already overfished, it is unlikely that increasing fishing activities will result in an adequate supply of proteins. Aquaculture, on the other hand, has been exponentially growing since the 1990’s. As of today, aquaculture provides already half of the fish products being consumed, providing food security in various areas around the world. However, the impacts of aquaculture on the local ecosystem cannot be neglected. For example, extensive feeding causes eutrophication, which may lead to harmful algal blooms, which on their turn endanger harvests, local ecosystems and human health. Coastal ecosystems, like mangrove forests, often with a high carbon sequestrating potential, are being removed in favor of aquaculture with consequences such as coastal erosion, biodiversity loss and a lower carbon sequestration. Antibiotics, applied to avoid losing profit due to diseases in the system, are an important cause of increasing antibiotic resistance. The impact of aquaculture on the environment should thus be taken into careful consideration in order to ensure a sustainable food supply.

Contents

The course aims at giving an extensive overview of aquaculture systems and their effects and interactions with the environment. To gain insight in said interactions, knowledge on different configurations and forms, e.g. traditional versus industrial aquaculture, is required and will be illustrated using case studies from all over the world. Additionally, the sustainability of different configurations will be discussed. Problems associated with aquaculture will be debated, such as, for example, (harmful) algal blooms with special attention to toxin production, species and monitoring. The theoretical insights in system configurations and interactions with the environment will be put into practice during the project assignment, in which the sustainability of an aquaculture system will be assessed. Additionally, students will participate in the VLIZ Marine Science Day to gain a broad overview of environmental impact on marine ecosystems.