Market driven management of climate change impacts in the Spanish mussel sector

Mussel farming is the largest aquaculture activity in Spain both in volume and value, being a key pillar for the development of the coastal areas in Galicia (NW Spain), where this production is concentrated. The available scientific knowledge suggests that in the long term the primary productivity of the Galician estuaries will be reduced due to climate change. Consequently, adaptive management will be required to face this challenge. The impact of the likely production decrease will depend, among other factors, on the availability of substitutes, being their identification the main object of this research. So, it was analysed whether this markets are integrated or not through cointegration tests, finding that only the French and the Spanish markets are partially integrated. This implies that since very little substitutes are available for the Galician fresh mussels, decreases in production will not necessarily affect producer's income, as prices increases will compensate the (eventual) reduction in volume. In terms of policy, this study suggests that market intelligence may contribute to an adaptive, pragmatic and flexible framework to face climate change impacts, avoiding too anticipated or blind responses that may result in economic, environmental and social costs.     

我国对虾养殖净收益影响因素分析

海水养殖是海洋经济重要的组成部分。中国是世界上最大的对虾养殖国,对虾养殖净收益直接影响对虾养殖户的生产积极性,进而影响对虾养殖产业持续稳定健康发展。文章以山东省、江苏省和广东省对虾养殖户的调查数据为依据,运用多元线性回归模型,对对虾养殖净收益的影响因素进行实证分析。结果表明,影响对虾养殖净收益的3个主要因素是:①每年对虾养殖的造数;②是否参加对虾养殖农业合作社;③对虾出塘的销售价格。对虾养殖者的年龄,受教育程度,是否混养其他品种生物,养殖模式,养殖面积对对虾养殖净收益影响不显著。基于回归结果,笔者提出完善对虾养殖基础设施;发展对虾养殖农业合作社和养殖协会;建立稳定的对虾市场价格调控体系等政策建议。     

Salmon aquaculture and coastal ecosystem health in Chile: Analysis of regulations,environmental impacts and bioremediation systems

In 2007 salmon, mollusk and seaweed aquaculture production in Chile totaled 904 thousand tonnes, making the nation the leading marine aquaculture producer in the western world. Salmonids grown in open cage net pens account for over 73% of the production. This review summarizes the current status of Chilean aquaculture and proposes the establishment of new regulations and monitoring programmes that encourage and accommodate emerging bioremediation technologies. In contrast to a rapidly expanding, well-financed and technologically advanced industry, the regulatory structure in Chile is outdated and based on insufficient science. The number of publications on the environmental impacts of salmon aquaculture in Chile is low relative to its production level. Nevertheless, the impacts of organic and inorganic waste on benthic communities, pelagic organisms and bird populations are documented. The technology to reduce these impacts using integrated multi-trophic aquaculture (IMTA) strategies exists, but has not been implemented at commercial scales. We call on the government and industry to support the creation of a well-financed and politically independent agency responsible for developing and enforcing science-based environmental regulations in Chile. The agency's immediate goal should be to fund research required to develop a transparent, ecosystem-based regulatory framework that promotes IMTA. Monitoring programs and licensing procedures must consider the impacts of individual sites and the cumulative impacts from multiple sites across a wide range of spatial scales. Before such changes are realized, environmental threats and human health risks will remain unacceptably high and salmon farming in Chile will not meet any reasonable definition of sustainability.     

Economic impact of climate change and climate change adaptation strategies for fisheries sector in Solomon Islands: Implication for food security

Fisheries resources play a major role in the national economy and to food security in Solomon Islands. Climate change is likely to have a substantial impact on fish production that can lead to a fragile food security condition in the country. This paper assesses the potential economic impact of three important climate change adaptation strategies – natural resource management (NRM), fish aggregating devices (FAD) and aquaculture – in Solomon Islands. The study used a country-specific partial equilibrium economic model with six fish sub-sectors and analyzed potential impact of alternate climate change adaptation strategies for 2035 and 2050. The modeling and scenario analyses show that total fish demand is likely to surpass domestic fish production in 2050. Without appropriate climate adaptation strategy, per capita consumption of domestically produced fish will decline, which has serious negative food security implications for the country. The economic (welfare) analysis conducted based on modeling results show that the national level net economic gains due to climate change adaptation strategies are substantial. If cost and topographic conditions permit, low-cost inshore FADs are expected to be a good mechanism for augmenting domestic supplies of tuna and similar species in Solomon Islands.     

Shrimp farming in coastal Brazil: Reasons for market failure and sustainability challenges

In Brazil, farm shrimp production has remained constant over the last five years but exports have fallen sharply and almost all production is now consumed domestically. This situation exists despite adequate water resources, available labour and climatic conditions which allow three production cycles per year. This paper is based on an assessment of the shrimp industry at a critical time when exports had reached their maximum level and were about to fall precipitously. It examines the reasons for the shrimp export market failure and discusses sustainability challenges for the future. Data were collected through interviews with hatchery, farm and processing plant managers and other stakeholders in Rio Grande do Norte state, the largest Brazilian farmed shrimp producer. It was found that market failure was the result of inadequate industry planning, inappropriate public policy and a lack of coordinated actions among the various shrimp producers and stakeholders. The research demonstrates that sustainable Brazilian shrimp farming will require technological and management improvements, institutional changes and an appropriate environmental and social framework.     

Feasibility of ranching coastal cod (Gadus morhua) compared with on-growing, full-cycle farming and fishing

The feasibility of ranching wild cod in ‘herds’ was compared with three other scenarios: on-growing of wild cod in sea cages, full-cycle cod farming with hatchery produced juveniles, and commercial cod fishery. In the calculations it was assumed that an existing fishing company could either fish, ranch or on-grow 200 tons of cod quota to increase the quota yield or sell it to invest in full-cycle farming. The results indicate ranching to be the most profitable, fishing as the second and on-growing as the third, whereas full-cycle farming appears to be unrewarding. The net present value (NPV) of the four scenarios was €754 000, €532 000, €198 000 and €−95 000, respectively. Ranching based on aggregating and growing wild cod in a reserved coastal area with anthropogenic feeding thus has the potential of decreasing the cost of fishing, improving growth rate and enhancing quota yield without the investments required in conventional farming. As cod ranching is in the initial stages of development the risks are higher than in the well established cod fishery.     

A requiem for the IFQ in US fisheries?

Despite their apparent economic benefits to harvesters, individual fishing quotas (IFQs) have only been adopted in three US fisheries: Mid-Atlantic surf clam and ocean quahog; South Atlantic wreckfish; and, North Pacific halibut and sablefish. During the 1996 reauthorization of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act, Congress temporarily blocked implementation of additional IFQ programs in US fisheries. In this paper, we argue that because of the emergence of an alternative, the cooperative, it is unlikely that new IFQs will be adopted in federally managed US fisheries. From an economic perspective, cooperatives offer the advantage of eliminating production externalities that may remain under an IFQ program with relatively large owner classes. More significantly, development of IFQ programs appears to be increasingly overwhelmed by the proliferation of both equity concerns and seemingly interminable rent-seeking behavior — both issues that can effectively block adoption of IFQs. Ironically (and paradoxically?), by reducing the scope of the equity issues acknowledged, the cooperative alternative narrows the pool of claimants and modifies the behavior of the remainder, making implementation more likely. A further irony exists in that IFQs are widely thought to be best designed at the local/regional level while part of the appeal of the cooperative model is that it appears to shortcut the often protracted nature of the local/regional political process by relying on direct intervention from Washington, DC, in the form of actions by Congress or the Justice Department.     

Environmental effects of mariculture in China: An overall study of nitrogen and phosphorus loads

Eutrophication in coastal area has become more and more serious and mariculture potential is a main cause.Although there are some quantitative research on nutrient loads in national and global perspective, the calculation method problems make the results controversial. In this paper, the farming activities are divided into fed culture types（include cage culture and pond culture） and extractive culture types（e.g. seaweed, filter-feeding shellfish culture）. Based on the annual yield of China in 20...     

对虾白斑综合征病毒(WSSV)宿主研究进展

对虾白斑综合征病毒(white spot syndrome virus,WSSV)自1992年暴发以来,已在世界范围内传播开来,每年给对虾养殖业造成巨大经济损失,至今仍未得到完全控制。本文根据1995～2005年的有关文献资料,综述了对虾白斑综合征病毒宿主方面的研究进展。     

The impact of climate change on prawn postlarvae fishing in coastal Bangladesh: Socioeconomic and ecological perspectives

In Bangladesh, prawn (Macrobrachium rosenbergii) farming remains dependent on the capture of wild postlarvae as hatchery production is still inadequate. However, prawn postlarvae fishing has been accompanied by concerns over recent climate change. Different climatic variables including cyclone, salinity, sea level rise, water temperature, flood, rainfall, and drought have had adverse effects on coastal ecosystem, thus determining a decline in the availability of prawn postlarvae and thereby catch. The households of postlarvae fishers also face a variety of socioeconomic constraints due to climate change. Considering extreme vulnerability to the effects of climate change, an integrated approach needs to be introduced to cope with the challenges.     

潮间带垒石蒙网养鲍技术研究

在潮间带进行垒石蒙网养鲍试验，４个岩礁区共设置１３６个石垛，放养壳长１．３￣３．０厘米的鲍５５．１万只，经１８个月养殖，共产商品鲍１９．２５４吨，平均亩产１３９７．８公斤，平均壳长６．８１厘米，成活率８９．６％，实现产值６９３．１４４万元，利润３５２．８１万元。该成果１９９６年被评为青岛市科技进步三等奖。     

Restructuring the Chinese seafood industry,global challenges and policy implications

This article discusses how the Chinese seafood industry will affect the rest of the world's fishing industries. The analysis is based on theories of economic comparative advantage, the international division of labour and the internationalization process related to trade activities. Given the increasing domestic demand for fish in China, the limited availability of domestic fish stocks and less success for farmed marine fish in China are considered some of the most important factors in restricting the growth in Chinese seafood production. The necessity of raw fish imports into China may increase pressure on global fish stocks and international fish prices, resulting in tighter supplies worldwide and higher seafood prices for the Chinese. Sustainable fish harvests and trade require stronger fishery management, in particular in the relations between seafood companies and governments along the entire international value chain supplying China. Such structural changes may allow new value-added possibilities for fish farming and the upgrading of certain fish species for human consumption that were previously utilized purely for fish feed.     

Genetic improvement of New Zealand aquaculture species: programmes,progress and prospects

Aquaculture, like terrestrial farming, cannot achieve economic and sustainable production without high performing genetic stocks tailored to the conditions under which they are grown. It is essential, therefore, that aquaculture investment includes genetics and biotechnology to adapt marine livestock to the novel conditions of intensive aquaculture and to the demanding markets into which they are sold. The return on investment in well-structured breeding programmes can be very high, and significant performance and economic gains have been demonstrated in multiple species. Many factors must be considered in designing a genetic improvement programme, including the reproductive biology of the species and the identification of realistic and commercially relevant breeding goals based on the resources and facilities available. This paper reviews the options available to aquaculturists and provides examples of how these are being applied to six aquaculture species in New Zealand: king salmon, hāpuku, kingfish, Greenshell^TM mussels, Pacific oysters and pāua (abalone).     

New estimates of Southern Ocean biological production rates from O2/Ar ratios and the triple isotope composition of O2

We report O₂/Ar ratios (a constraint on net community production) and the triple isotopic composition of dissolved O₂ (a constraint on gross primary production) in samples collected from the surface mixed layer on 23 Southern Ocean transits. Samples were collected at 1–2° meridional resolution during the austral summer. Methodological limitations notwithstanding, the results constrain the net/gross production ratio, net O₂ production, and gross O₂ production at unprecedented resolution throughout the Southern Ocean mixed layer. Gross O₂ production rates inferred from the oxygen triple isotopes are greater than production rates calculated from a model based on remotely sensed chlorophyll. This result agrees with previous ¹⁸O and ¹⁴C incubations along 170°W. O₂/Ar ratios exceeding saturation are consistently observed within the Subantarctic and Polar Frontal Zones south of New Zealand and Australia, showing that a net autotrophic community predominates during austral summer. Lower O₂/Ar values are observed within the Drake Passage and Antarctic Zone, suggesting unresolved influences of low net community production, net heterotrophy, and upwelling of O₂-undersaturated waters. In autotrophic waters of the austral summer mixed layer, ratios of net community production/gross O₂ production scatter about 0.13, corresponding to f ratios of ∼0.25. Net community/gross O₂ production ratios show no meridional gradient across the Antarctic Circumpolar Current, suggesting that an approximately constant fraction of gross primary productivity is regenerated or exported. Our calculated net O₂ production rates are in satisfactory agreement with comparable published estimates. Net and gross O₂ production rates are highest in the Subantarctic and decline to the south, paralleling the well-known trend of chlorophyll a concentrations. In an analysis of variance of net O₂ production and gross O₂ production with other environmental variables, the strongest correlations are between net O₂ production and sea surface temperature (SST) (direct correlation), climatological [NO₃⁻] (inverse correlation), and estimates of primary productivity derived from a remote sensing (direct correlation). These trends are as expected if aerosol iron input is the most important influence on production. They are unexpected if upwelling-derived SiO₂ and iron are the leading influence or if lower SSTs promote greater export in this region.     

Determining the degree of 'small-scaleness' using fisheries in British Columbia as an example

Small-scale fisheries have been estimated to contribute up to 30% of the global landed value, which is caught by approximately 22 million fishers, some of which can be attributed to developed countries. Socio-economic analysis of small-scale fisheries often focuses on developing countries and fails to recognize the presence and contribution of small-scale fisheries in the developed world. Fisheries in British Columbia are diverse and often regarded as being industrialized and large-scale when analyzed in a global context. This study aims to demonstrate that features of small-scale fisheries are present within British Columbia's fleets. A list of re-occurring features of small-scale fisheries is curated from the literature to capture physical, economic and social features of small-scale fisheries. These commonly identified features of small-scale fisheries are applied to Aboriginal Food, Social and Ceremonial fisheries and all commercial fisheries in British Columbia are analyzed to determine the presence or absence of each small-scale fishery feature. The results of this research create a gradient of fisheries from smallest to largest scale. This approach determines that Aboriginal Food, Social and Ceremonial fisheries are the most small-scale, while the sablefish fishery is the largest scale. The qualitative nature of this framework creates an opportunity for any group of fisheries in the world to be compared.     

Incorporating the dynamics of marine systems into the stock assessment and management of sablefish

Progress in ecosystem management requires the characterisation of the dynamics of a species's ecosystem and the influences of climatic oscillations on those dynamics. Within the North Pacific, ecosystem dynamics have been described on decadal-scales (regimes) and have been shown to shift abruptly (regime shifts). The year class success of sablefish (Anoplopoma fimbria) exhibit decadal-scale patterns that relate to decadal-scale patterns in North Pacific climate–ocean conditions. As an example, and a step towards, incorporating the dynamics of marine systems into the stock assessment and management of sablefish, we produce a ‘report card’ that characterises the species's ecosystem on decadal-scales. This report card consists of a matrix of climatological and oceanographic indices for the North Pacific, and regional environmental and biological indices. It indicates that both Pacific-wide and regionally, conditions were generally good for sablefish year class strength during the 1977–1988 regime, but these favourable conditions did not persist into the 1990s. Exploitation scenarios can be developed around the decadal-scale dynamics in sablefish year class success and their life history, in particular longevity. Fisheries managers can begin to develop exploitation strategies that acknowledge these changes in the sablefish ecosystem. The report card presents an aggregation of parameters that, on average, gives an impression of productivity during a specific regime and can be used to augment present stock assessment and management efforts.     

Bioenergetic model estimates of interannual and spatial patterns in consumption demand and growth potential of juvenile pink salmon (Oncorhynchus gorbuscha) in the Gulf of Alaska

A bioenergetic model of juvenile pink salmon (Oncorhynchus gorbuscha) was used to estimate daily prey consumption and growth potential of four ocean habitats in the Gulf of Alaska during 2001 and 2002. Growth potential was not significantly higher in 2002 than in 2001 at an alpha level of 0.05 (P=0.073). Average differences in growth potential across habitats were minimal (slope habitat=0.844 g d⁻¹, shelf habitat=0.806 g d⁻¹, offshore habitat=0.820 g d⁻¹, and nearshore habitat=0.703 g d⁻¹) and not significantly different (P=0.630). Consumption demand differed significantly between hatchery and wild stocks (P=0.035) when examined within year due to the interaction between hatchery verses wild origin and year. However, the overall effect of origin across years was not significant (P=0.705) due to similar total amounts of prey consumed by all juvenile pink salmon in both study years. We anticipated that years in which ocean survival was high would have had high growth potential, but this relationship did not prove to be true. Therefore, modeled growth potential may not be useful as a tool for forecasting survival of Prince William Sound hatchery pink salmon stocks. Significant differences in consumption demand and a two-fold difference in nearshore abundance during 2001 of hatchery and wild pink salmon confirmed the existence of strong and variable interannual competition and the importance of the nearshore region as being a potential competitive bottleneck.     

Preliminary data on the impact of fish farming facilities on Posidonia oceanica meadows in the Mediterranean

While the extension of aquaculture along the coasts of the Mediterranean islands is today an economic priority, no data is available on the impact of these facilities on the littoral environment in general, and in particular on the Posidonia oceanica meadows that are responsible for the richness and diversity of these biotopes. The impact of fish farming facilities in the marine littoral environment is assessed at three Mediterranean sites in Corsica and Sardinia. Various parameters are considered: (i) the amount of light available, (ii) the nature of the sediment, and (iii) the vitality of the Posidonia oceanica beds. The findings confirm the impact of the aquaculture facilities within the water column (increase in turbidity, enrichment of the sediment in organic matter and nutrients), and it would appear that the Posidonia oceanica beds also undergo significant alterations. The decline in density of the meadows in the area influenced by aquaculture farming and their total disappearance beneath the facilities is particularly disturbing, even if the areas affected are not very extensive, at least for the smaller farms (a few hundred square metres), and if certain beneficial effects may be recorded (increase in benthic primary production). Because of its ability to record environmental alterations caused by these facilities (light, nutrients, trace metals), the Posidonia oceanica meadow is a good bioindicator for use in monitoring studies.     

What factors affect the decision making process when setting TACs?: The case of Chilean fisheries

Although failures and successes in fisheries management are related to decision making processes, these are rarely analyzed in detail and even less often following quantitative or semi-quantitative approaches. Herein, we study the decision making process for Chile's most important fisheries using a binary decision model. This model evaluates the probability that an annual total allowable catch (TAC) will or will not be modified by the National Fisheries Council (NFC) based on biological, economic, and social factors. We also analyze some aspects of individual voting, particularly whether the members vote against or abstain from voting on the proposed TAC and if they prioritize resource conservation objectives. Our results indicate that the risk of over exploitation for many important stocks in Chile is aggravated by failures at the decision making level: the scientifically recommended TACs for those fisheries that generate higher levels of employment and have greater economic value are normally increased. This analysis shows that the NFC has clearly prioritized short-term economic and social objectives over resource conservation goals. We discuss the need to adjust the composition and functioning of the NFC in order to ensure long-term sustainability of the fisheries.     

Simulation ABC Model of Consumption of Natural Resources

The problem of simulation of possible scenarios of the development of processes running in ecological economic systems is studied as a part of the general problem of control over natural economic complexes. The consumption of mineral, food, and ecological resources is regarded as credits given by the society to the producer and then refunded as a part of his gains. If this nature-protective tax does not compensate the damage to the environment caused by production, then the debt of the producer (called accumulated credit) appears and, finally, the process of consumption of the resources is terminated. A universal simulation model is constructed by using a new method of adaptive balance of causes (ABC method). We present basic concepts of this method and some examples of application of the simulation model to the analysis of various scenarios of consumption of marine bioresources under variable economic conditions for a marine environment with variable assimilation capacity.