ECOSYSTEM-BASED APPROACH TO NORWEGIAN AQUACULTURE MANAGEMENT
European Scientific Journal June 2014 /SPECIAL/ edition vol.2 ISSN: 1857 - 7881 (Print) e
ECOSYSTEM-BASED APPROACH TO NORWEGIAN AQUACULTURE MANAGEMENT
Saleh Alaliyat 0
Candidate 0
0 Aalesund University College , Norway
The Norwegian aquaculture is a growing industry and has become an important industry in Norway. It is one of the most export industries, and contributes to activities throughout the whole country, particularly in many local communities along the cost where the aquaculture industry activity is concentrated. Poor management and unregulated aquaculture industry will lead to many negative effects on the whole ecosystem. The ecosystem has thresholds and limits that can affect the system structure when exceeded. The ecosystem approach for aquaculture is a strategy for the integrated management of land, water, and living resources that it promotes sustainable development, equity, and resilience of interlinked social and ecological systems. Aquaculture development needs to be within the carrying capacity of the water resources, social-based and within other relative sectors so that is sustainable without negative impacts on the environment. In this paper, I will discuss an applying ecosystem-based approach to Norwegian aquaculture at different scales to ensure a sustainable aquaculture development without negative impacts on the environment. 30 Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. 31 The Norwegian Ministry of Fisheries and Coastal Affairs. 32 Statistics Norway, www.ssb.no
Ecosystem-based management; Norwegian aquaculture management; ecosystem approach to aquaculture
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Introduction
Aquaculture is about to revolutionize the way we consume fish and other marine food
products as agriculture already did on land. During the past few decades world capture
fisheries have stabilized or decreased, whereas aquaculture production has increased
massively (FAO30 2012). In 2010, aquaculture stood for 47% of global food fish production,
and in Norway the export value of farmed seafood now exceeds that of wild caught species
(FKD31 2013). Today, fish is the third most important export product after oil/gas and metal,
and accounts for 5.7 per cent of the total Norwegian export value according to Statistics
Norway (SBB32 2013). Norway is the largest exporter of aquaculture products in Europe, and
number six globally, after Asian nations such as China, India and Indonesia (FAO 2012). This
industry is very important for the farmers and the people living along the cost according to the
benefits in the form of labour opportunities and financial income. The number of employees
who employed directly in the aquaculture production is around 9000, but more than 22,000
are involved in this industry. Most people in Norway (about 80 percent of the population) live
in less than 10 km from the sea. It is thus clearly of high importance for Norwegian economy
to ensure a sustainable aquaculture development.
The costal/fjord ecosystems receive fresh water inputs; rich in organic and mineral
nutrients derived from erosion, urban, agricultural, aquaculture and industrial effluents, and
are subject to strong anthropogenic pressures due to the fish farming. The interactions
between land environment and sea boundaries reveal high physical, chemical and biological
complexities, making the management decisions difficult to take and the consequences of
these decisions very hard to predict. Emissions from onshore activities in Norway, from the
offshore oil and gas industry and from ships all contribute to inputs of various substances to
fjords areas and coastal waters where the aquaculture industry activity is concentrated.
Norwegian government is working with all the stockholders to ensure that the
Norwegian aquaculture industry is run on a sustainable basis and eco-friendly as well (figure
1). A sustainable aquaculture industry should run with consideration for the environment, and
adapted to the surrounding marine environment and biological diversity. It is important to
ensure a clean marine environment and good production locations for aquaculture, with
minimum impact from transport emissions and pollution from more local sources. Therefore,
authorities and industry must cooperate to ensure a sustainable aquaculture development with
benefit of its surroundings (ecosystem-based). An environmentally sustainable aquaculture
industry, minimizing risks to the marine environment and biological diversity, is a
prerequisite for long-term growth and development. The strategy of the Norwegian
government identifies five key areas where aquaculture may potentially have a negative
impact on the environment (FKD 2009); 1) Escaped fish/genetic interaction; 2) Pollution and
discharges; 3) Diseases and parasites; 4) Use of coastal areas; 5) Feed and feed resources. In
this paper I will discuss an applying ecosystem-based approach to Norwegian aquaculture at
different scales to ensure a sustainable aquaculture development without (...truncated)