The challenge of sustainable aquaculture production -

Transcription

1

2 The challenge of sustainable aquaculture production - research and advice for a changing world Karin Kroon Boxaspen Head of Aquaculture programme Institute of Marine Research

3 Research for better management advice on AQUACULTURE on THE ECOSYSTEMS of - the Barents Sea - the Norwegian Sea - the North Sea - the Norwegian coastal zone

4 Outline Aquaculture Sustainable development Footprint Research Carrying capacity Strategic framework Risk assessment Advice Perception and emotion Future

5 Aquaculture FAO, 2010 Value (in 1000 USD) Year Europe Asia Americas Africa

6 Atlantic salmon production Production (metric tonnes) Canada Chile Faroe Islands Ireland Norway United Kingdom Year FAO, 2012

7 Global capture and aquaculture production (Fish, crustacean and molluscs) Capture Aquaculture 90 million tonnes in 2007 >90 million tonnes in 2027 Prognosis based on 3% yearly growth Metric tonnes million tonnes in million tonnes in Value 120 bill USD Year FAO, 2009/ 2012

8

9 Hall et al: Blue Frontiers, Managing the environmental cost of aquaculture, 2011

10 Technical development

11 It is apparent from this study that aquaculture has, from an ecological efficiency and environmental impact perspective, clear benefits over other forms of animal source food production for human consumption. In view of this, where resources are stretched, the relative benefits of policies that promote fish farming over other forms of livestock production should be considered. Hall et al: Blue Frontiers, Managing the environmental cost of aquaculture, 2011

12 Sustainable development

13 Ecological footprint Measure of human demand on the Earth's ecosystems Represents the amount of biologically productive land and sea area necessary to supply the resources a human population consumes, and to assimilate associated waste Possible to estimate how much of the Earth (or how many planet Earths) it would take to support humanity if everybody followed a given lifestyle Wikipedia Footprint in stone 2 mill years old?

14 Sustainable development - The Brundtland commission definition "Sustainable development is development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs". (Brundtland 1987, World Commission on Environment and Development (WCED))

15 Sustainable Responsible management of resource use. In ecology, sustainability describes how biological systems remain diverse and productive over time Necessary precondition for the well-being of humans and other organisms Dimensions Environmental Economic Social

16 Dimensions and their importance? economic social environmental social environmental economic

17 Sustainable food production challenges Will this production cause irreversible effects on the ecosystem on land or in the sea? Will the production bring about unjustified use of non-renevable resources? Is the use of resources acceptable?

18 Aquaculture research

19 Broad focus 11 parallel sessions over 4 days 10 to 15 different topics every day 596 posters Focus range Species Politics and legislation Environmental interactions Animal health and welfare Technology development

20 Atlantic salmon scallops turbot Pacific cupped oyster gilthead sea bream Atlantic cod mussels European flat oyster Atlantic halibut common carp European sea bass European lobster

21 Possible impacts open cage aquaculture

22 Approach examples from Canada, Scotland and Norway Strategic framework Key themes Indicators under development Thresholds or acceptance criteria under discussion

23 Scotland Healthier fish and shellfish Improved systems for licensing aquaculture developments Improved containment Better marketing and improved image Improved access to finance

24 Canada Maintaining Health & Productive Ecosystems Maintaining Animal Health & Welfare Ensuring Safe & Healthy Products Using Resources Efficiently Encouraging Social Responsibility Ensuring an Economically Viable & Successful Sector

25 Norway Genetic interaction and escapees Pollution and discharges Disease, including parasites Area management (Zoning) Feed and feed resources

26 Common problems in open sea cage farming Disease transfer (in particular parasites and virus) Genetic impact on wild populations Euthrofication problems (local and regional) Organic overload (local and regional) Release of therapeutics and toxins Impact on behaviour/feed intake in wild organisms Use of area Legislation and management

27 Research and Advise Aquaculture, IMR Norway Sustainable aquaculture Environmental and ecological effects of aquaculture and ocean ranging Health and disease dispersal interactions farmed and wild populations Effect of escapees, salmonids and cod Welfare

28 Effects on wild salmonids Salmon lice and escapees High probability of impact First generation indicators and thresholds suggested Up for political decision process

29 Remote effects ( regional?) Transition zone (1 km?) MOM-B MOM-C /WFD analysis Site zone Pia Kupka Hansen and Arne Ervik, IMR; note the scale of zones are not accurate

30 Sea floor Around netpen 1,5 km from farm

31 Examining effects from the littoral downwards using transects with ROV/diving in the Hardangerfjord; Vivian Husa et al, IMR

32 Examining macroalgae using WFD method Site EQR-value Score Klosterfjord Good Borgundøy Good Huglo Very good Skorpo Good Løfallstrand Very good Steinesnes Good Svoldal Very good Haukanes Very good Apalnes Very good Ljonestangen Good Skjerring Goid Mundheim Very good Solesnes Very good Aksdal Very good Øystese Good Samlaneset Very good Ålvik Very good Husa et al. in Taranger et al. 2011

33 Definitions of Carrying Capacity Carrying capacity maximum potential production of a species or population in a defined area in relation to available food resources (ICES Study Group, EIM 1987) Holding capacity maximum potential production of a defined area limited by a nontrophic resource (ICES Study Group, EIM 1987) Assimilative capacity the ability of an area to maintain a healthy environment and accommodate wastes (Fernandes et al. 2001).

34 Deciding carrying capacity Impact 1 Impact 2 Environmental standard 1 Carrying capacity 1 Carrying capacity 2 Production/ biomass

35 Risk assements

36 Area management ecosystem based regulation Holistic and ecological based planning and regulation in the marine environment Protect biodiversity Maximise profit from resources Minimize negative impact (protected areas) Settle use of area stop conflict The area management plans is the framework for other regulations

37 Ecosystem approach Practical implementation of Ecosystem Approach Aquaculture (EAA) entails examining existing or developing aquaculture activities so as to identify key priority issues to be dealt with by management in order to achieve sustainable outcomes within a risk based management framework.

38 Methods for risk assessment of aquaculture A range of criteria and methods has been proposed; Impact characteristics are described in terms of: Nature Magnitude Extent/location Timing Duration Reversibility Likelihood Impact prediction draws on a variety of methods including: Professional judgement Quantitative mathematical models Experiments, physical models Case studies

39 Risk assessments Deciding on indicators Impact Practicallity Availability Measureability Accuracy Coverage Thresholds or acceptance criteria Compile multiple impacts and regional effects

40 New due in January 2013

41 Gaps in knowledge and assessment Effects on hard bottom organisms Impact on nearby macroalgae Sensitive organism such as corals and sponges Distance allowed for measurable changes Monitoring of regional effects How to calibrate with the EU Water Framework Directive?

42 Norwegian conclusions Infection pressure from salmon lice on sea trout and genetic impact of escapees are the most problematic factors in this risk assessment Resistence towards available chemical salmon lice treatment can increase the risk Risk of regional euthrofication and negative organic load are low

43 Possibilities for collaboration Developing a cross-sectoral common understanding and handling of environmental risk assessment Methods for assessing cumulative impacts and vulnerabilities National and international standards ISO Common indicators and thresholds or acceptance criteria

44

45 Possibilities for collaboration cont ICES WG Environmental Interactions of Mariculture (EIM) WG Marine Shellfish Culture (MASC) Expert group Sustainability in Aquaculture? First step Peer review of national reports

46 Advice

47 Perception

48 What do we know Fish farming is mainly conducted in close contact with the coastal ecosystem in open sea cages; many interactions possible Methods and criteria are available to assess risk of negative ecological effects of fish farming, but setting acceptance criteria or judgment of impact need involvement with stakeholders and political decision makers Extensive monitoring programs are needed to document and quantify impacts There is limited data on a range of risk factors and we need monitoring programs and more basic knowledge

49 What do we need? Baseline data on natural condition Surveillance programs Knowledge on cause and effects between release and environmental effect Defined thresholds or aceptance criteria for acceptable environmental effect Effective measures to reduce effect

50 Views for the future Production on several trophic levels IMTA Ocean ranging

51

52 Carbon sequestering and bio-filtering of waste water from industry Nutrient rich waste water NO 3 CO 2 High growth of macro and micro algae

53 Utilization of micro algae and seaweeds Lipids and high value substances Carbohydrates Protein BIOCHAR Stores carbon, soil improvement

54 Governance Achieving the global aquaculture sector s long-term goal of economic, social and environmental sustainability depends primarily on continued commitments by governments to provide and support a good governance framework for the sector. FAO Fisheries and Aquaculture technical paper 500/1

55 Where to go from here Science Solid scientific documentation Peer reviewed internationally Good Advice Transparent process Continue to strive towards international concensus

56 Thank you for your attention!