Aquaculture management

1. Sustainable
Aquaculture
Texas Envirothon
-Aquatics-
Teacher Workshop
January 11 2014
Jenny Oakley
Environmental Scientist
oakley@uhcl.edu

2. Aquatic Resource Consumption
• In the US, 16 ½ lbs of
seafood/person/year
o US population (2012): ~314million =
~5.2billion lbs/year
• US imports over half of the
seafood it consumes.
• Global total production
=148.5 million tons in 2010.

3. Fish is good for you…right?
• Institute of Medicine: recommends a
diet rich in seafood.
• Lean, heart healthy source of protein
• But, Is all seafood safe to eat?
o PCBs
o Heavy metals
o DDT
o Hormones
o Radiation?

5. Overfishing
• Definition: Catching too much fish for the system to
support by reproduction.
o Economically extinct fisheries
o Fishing down the food-chain
o Bycatch
o Irreversible consequences
• Overfishing Video LINK

6. OMG, we are doomed!
• Wait, is this some kind of fish story?
o Sample methods
o Population numbers = a guess
o Middle Ground
• Magnuson–Stevens Fishery
Conservation and Management Act -
1976-
o Sustainable fisheries act of 1996
o National Marine Fisheries Service (NOAA)
o U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
o State Parks and Wildlife Department

7. So… how do we provide food?
• Aquaculture production = avg. growth of 6.3 % per year
• 2010, value of aquaculture production ~ at $119.4 billion.
Producer
Million
Metric
Tons
China 36.7
India 4.6
Viet Nam 2.7
Indonesia 2.3
Bangladesh 1.3
Thailand 1.4
Norway 1
Egypt 0.9
Myanmar 0.8
the Philippines 0.7
• Top 10 aquaculture producers In 2010,
contributed 87.6 % of world production
by quantity.

8. Aquaculture
• Output of Aquaculture:
o Consumption
• Direct: fish market
• Indirect: fish meal or byproducts
o Stock wild populations
• TPWD = 40 million fish in public
lakes, ponds, and saltwater bays
• Definition: the farming of aquatic organisms.

9. What is being produced?
• Major cultured species:
o Freshwater Fishes: 56.4%
o Molluscs: 23.6%
o Crustaceans: 9.6%
o Diadromous Fishes: 6.0 %
o Marine Fishes: 3.1%
o Other: 1.4%

10. Aquaculture Types
Farm/Tank vs Ranch/Cage

11. Aquaculture Products
Fish Amphibians Invertebrates Reptiles Plants

12. Is Aquaculture the Answer?

13. Environmental Impacts
• Loss of natural habitat
o Water needs
• Coastal areas: Mangroves
• Riparian zone: Rivers
• Loss of genetic diversity
o Brood Stock

14. Environmental Impacts Cont.
• Water Usage
o Intake screens
o Water rights
• Pollution
o Eutrophication
o Thermal pollution
o Disease and Pathogens
o Antibiotics, steroids, & drug resistant pathogens

15. Environmental Impacts Cont.
• Escapees
o Invasive species
• Asian Carp LINK
o Genetic pollution
• Predator Control
o Permitted and Unpermitted control of birds, marine mammals, etc.
• Physical removal
• Sonar

16. Environmental Impacts Cont.
• Feeding Fish with Fish?
o Wild caught fish used to feed aquaculture
o Farming carnivores LINK

17. Sustainability of Aquaculture
• Proper site selection
o Permitting requirements
• Reduce overfeeding
o Cuts costs of food
o Reduces nutrient buildup
o Helps maintain D.O. levels
• Polyculture/Aquaponics
o Utilizes natural foods efficiently
o But is it possible large-scale?

18. Sustainability of Aquaculture Cont.
• Grow vegetarian fish & feed vegetarian food LINK
• Closed Loop/Recirculating Systems
o Addresses: Water needs, outfall pollution
o Increase costs with expensive and complex filtration systems

19. Sustainability of Aquaculture Cont.
• Avoid overstocking
o Reduced stress
o Reduced disease/pathogen outbreak
• Minimize antibiotic use
• Sell and Buy Locally
o Reduce transportation footprint
• Stock native species
o Temperature requirements

20. What can
you do?
• Make ocean-friendly
seafood choices
o Avoid unsustainable seafood
in the grocery store or
restaurants
o Ask, where your seafood
came from!
o Try to eat locally grown
seafood (Regional)
o Spread the word!

21. Questions?
Jenny Oakley
oakley@uhcl.edu

22. Dichotomous Key