Topic 4.
3: Aquatic Food Production Systems Worksheet
Name: İlkim Kurt
Describe the trend shown for wild fish catches and compare to farmed fish catches and explain why this
is happening.
The combination of overfishing and habitat destruction caused wild fish catches to either stop
increasing or decrease
People turn to aqua culture to produce fish catches because fish consumption rates continue
to rise
The combination between technological progress, population growth and fishery use led to this
change
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Developments in fishing equipment and changes to fishing methods have led to dwindling fish
stocks and damage to habitats. Outline each of the fishing methods below and their
environmental impact
Method Description
Dredging
Use heavy frames as tools to collect species that live on the seabed. Seabed destruction
together with habitat disturbance leads to higher sediment levels in environment
Gillnets With the help of vertical nets, fish are caught by their gills. During the use of fishing
equipment, various unwanted marine life including dolphins and turtles are caught.
Trawling
Large nets drift in both deep water and seabed are, causing intense bycatch and destroying
seabed ecosystems.
Blast
fishing Fish kills occur through the use of explosive and it destroys coral reefs and marine
habitats and is illegal in many countries.
Aquaculture has grown to provide additional food resources and support economic development
and is expected to continue to rise
Define aquaculture: The farming of aquatic
organisms generally in controlled environments.
Why is aquaculture the fastest growing form of
food production in the world?
(Hint: compare aquaculture to what you already now
about terrestrial farming, energy loss and population
growth
Establishing seafood farms requires less land area than traditional farming worldwide.
Higher feed conversion efficiency which means less energy loss
Growing human populations require increased protein supplies
2
Farming pratices exist in a variety of aquatic environments from freshwater to saltwater to marine
environmeants.
Aquaculture has grown to provide additional food resources and support economic development
and is expected to continue to rise
Issues around aquaculture include loss of habitats, pollution (with feed, antifouling agents, antibiotics
and other medicines added to the fish pens), spread of diseases and escaped species (some involving
genetically modified organisms)
Compare the advantages and disadvantages of aquaculture in a table
Advantages of aquaculture Disadvantages of aquaculture
Habitat destruction
Increases food
security
Spread of diseases to wildlife
Efficient usage of
resources
Pollution
boosts economic development
Escaped fish disrupt ecosystems
reduce pressure on wild fisheries
3
Explain the potential value of aquaculture for providing food for future generations
Go to http://overfishing.org/pages/what_can_I_do_to_help.php
What four strategies for combatting overdishing are listed?
1.Implement stricter fisheries management policies
2. Establish marine protected areas
3. Encurage sustainable seafood choices
4. Educate and raise consumer awareness
Out of the four strategies, which do you think is the most effective? Explain why?
The creation of marine protected areas serves to protect breeding that help fish populations naturally
renew and grow
Out of the four strategies, which do you think is the most challenging? Explain why?
Better implementation of policies depends on political support and available economic availabilities
and international support networks
How would your rank the four strategies in the following categories?
● Most effective to least effective?
1. Marine protected areas
2. Stricter policies
3. Sustainable seafood promotion
4. Education
● Most expensive to least expensive?
4
1. Enforcement of policies
2. Marine protected areas
3. Awareness campaigns
4. Sustainable consumption shifts
● Most time consuming to least time consuming?
1. Education campaigns
2. Policy enforcement
3. Marine protection
4. Promoting sustainable choices
Discuss a case study that demonstrates the impact of aquaculture
Have a look at http://www.naturskyddsforeningen.se/sites/default/files/dokument-media/
murky_waters.pdf
Don’t worry – you aren’t expected to read a 64 page document – although it is really interesting.
Instead – can you summarise the main points for each of the sections listed below
Shrimp farming in Bangladesh
Effect of shrimp farming on…. Summary
Area where pond construction is permitted that weakens
Mangrove and forest ecosystems
coastal defenses
Natural barriers serve as defences against floods and cclonic
storms but their removal increases the risk of damage to
Climate and natural disasters
coastal areas
Populations of wild shrimp
The main reasons for the decline in both the number of wild
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fish and their natural habitats are overfishing and habitat
destruction
While land disputes and forced population movements occur
Social responsibility and human
simultaneously labor exploitation also occur
rights
Water pollution fromchemicals, medicines such as antibiotics
Pollution and waste
Maximum sustainable yield
Define sustainable yield
The rate at which a resource can be used without reducing its long-term
availability.
Define maximum sustainable yield
The maximum amount of resources that can be used without
causing longterm harmful effect on the environment
6
Define optimum sustainable yield
The level of use that provides the best balance between sustainability ecoogical health and economic
gain
Describe the relationship between MSY and k.
MSY usually occurs at half the carrying capacity of a population.
Why is it difficult to calculate k for a population of fish?
Marine ecosystems are complex and dynamic and also influenced by environmental factors
Why is harvesting at MSY unsustainable?
Any error is zero in this system which makes the system collapse during slight population changes and
environmental shifts
