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WWF's Center for Conservation Innovation (CCI) is working to identify better management practices (BMPs) to reduce the environmental and social impacts of aquaculture; to develop BMP-based screens for investors, buyers, and even government regulation and permitting systems; and to develop BMP-based aquaculture certification programs for key species. Both market-based mechanisms, such as certification, and governmental regulatory structure can help ensure that the aquaculture industry grows in an environmentally and socially sustainable manner. Well-enforced legislation works to cap specific impacts such as effluents. BMP-based certification, on the other hand, can drive industry to minimize their impacts, beyond what local legislation might require, while helping producers gain a market advantage. Certification programs can provide incentives to producers to innovate and to continually improve their operations due to their potential to adapt their standards as technologies change.
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The use of a feeding tray at a shrimp farm in Thailand reduces feed wastage, therefore reducing potentially harmful nutrient and organic loads to the environment.
photo: Network of Aquaculture Centres in Asia-Pacific |
WWF's work on aquaculture began ten years ago with a study on the comparative impacts of shrimp trawling and shrimp aquaculture that indicated that while both have significant environmental impacts, the greatest potential for improvement lay within the shrimp aquaculture sector. Shrimp aquaculture producers had technology and experience in reducing their environmental impact, and there was potential for reducing adverse effects further through innovation. The report concluded that shrimp aquaculture had the potential to become a much more sustainable way to produce shrimp than shrimp trawling given the bycatch issues and bottom disturbances caused by trawling. Guided by the recommendations of this report, WWF began work to help make shrimp aquaculture more environmentally sustainable.
CCI's early work that identified and analyzed impacts of the shrimp aquaculture industry and BMPs to reduce them was undertaken in collaboration with the World Bank, the Network of Aquaculture Centres in Asia-Pacific (NACA), and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO). The findings were somewhat surprising: There are no best practices, meaning that there is still room for considerable improvement. There are, however, better practices, which have significantly fewer impacts than worse ones. Better practices involve a number of different, often unrelated activities, but they yield measurable results. In fact, depending on scale, intensity, or the amount of capital a producer has to invest, different activities can yield the same results. Without exception, better operators use resources more efficiently, apply feeds and fertilizers in a more responsible manner, produce less waste, and, consequently, are more profitable.
CCI is currently conducting parallel research on standard development for a number of other species produced through aquaculture. These other commodities include important farmed finfish such as salmon, trout, tilapia and catfish. Additionally, clams, scallops, oysters, mussels, abalone, and seaweed are being examined. As with the research on shrimp, the goal of this work is to identify the 6-10 largest potential impacts of the different production systems as well as better management practices to reduce these impacts. The findings will then be used to design certification criteria and standards in addition to investment screens for each commodity as appropriate. Ultimately, the work aims to increase the sustainability of production for aquacultural commodities by minimizing environmental and social impacts, and providing producers, retailers, consumers, and investors the opportunity to contribute towards this increase in sustainability.
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