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Aquaculture 101: Everything You Need to Know

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26 Aug, 2024

This post was originally published on Eco Watch

Quick Key Facts

  1. Aquaculture is the agricultural practice of cultivating livestocks of aquatic species for human consumption.
  2. Around half of the fish consumed around the world come from various aquaculture businesses, which cultivate and harvest hundreds of distinct species.
  3. There are several types of aquaculture operations based on the type of water and infrastructure used.
  4. Many aquaculture facilities are spread across Asia, whereas the U.S. has relatively few farms.

What Is Aquaculture?

A large fish farm in the Mediterranean Sea, Greece. SHansche / iStock / Getty Images Plus

When you think of agriculture, the first images that come to mind might include big red barns full of hay, a flock of fuzzy sheep or an orchard of apple trees. But agriculture isn’t just all the flora, fauna and equipment that puts land-based food to our plates. It can also include everything we hunt and consume under the sea.

Aquaculture is a subsector within the agriculture industry. Humans working in this field cultivate or farm livestocks of aquatic species — anything from sea urchins, crabs and kelp to salmon and tuna —  for consumption. Around 580 aquatic species are harvested through aquaculture methods, “accounting for half of the world’s consumed fish,” according to Euronews.

According to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), global aquaculture production in 2020 included 87.5 million tonnes of aquatic animals that mainly went toward human consumption and 35.1 million tonnes of algae, including seaweed for “food and non-food uses.”

A kelp farm in Rongcheng, Shandong Province of China on Jan. 28, 2024. VCG / VCG via Getty Images

What Are the Different Types of Aquaculture?

There are a few ways to categorize the different types of aquaculture facilities.

Marine vs. Freshwater Operations

One way to classify aquaculture operations is by the type of water they use, i.e. water that is salty, not salty (read: freshwater) or brackish (meaning it’s somewhat salty). The most obvious distinction is that the different types of water represent separate ecosystems, which influence which species can be grown.

A shrimp farm in Ningbo City, China. Tao Wang / iStock / Getty Images Plus

Marine or saltwater aquaculture operations can cultivate shellfish like mussels, shrimp, oysters or clams, as well as algae, kelp and other fish like salmon, black sea bass and pompano, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). The FAO says that brackish water operations are primarily centered around shrimp

Freshwater facilities, meanwhile, can develop freshwater species like catfish and trout; NOAA says that roughly 70% of U.S. aquaculture is dedicated to freshwater catfish and trout cultivation.

But the type of harvestable species isn’t the only dissimilarity between marine and freshwater aquaculture operations. They also require different types of infrastructure, explains the U.S. Geological Survey.

“Marine fish farming is typically done in net pens in the water or in tanks on land,” the federal agency explains on its website. “Freshwater aquaculture primarily takes place in ponds or other manmade systems.”

A scallops farm in Tongoy Bay, Chile. Maria Valladares / NOAA Photo Library

Natural vs. Artificial Environments

The Aquaculture Stewardship Council, or ASC, says that some aquaculture facilities will utilize the actual environment the aquatic species would naturally be found in, like an ocean or pond, but will be held in an enclosure — like a pen, net or cage — so they cannot escape. But other operations may opt to create an artificial environment, like a tank, onshore that is filled with the type of water the species prefers.

In some onshore aquaculture farms, “the water is used only once (open system), [whereas] in others the water is recycled (closed or recirculation system),” according to the organization.

Tilapia ponds in Brazil. Anderson Coelho / E+ / Getty Images

Where Are Aquaculture Facilities Located?

A mussels farm and shrimp lake farm in Nha Trang, Vietnam. Pham Hung / iStock / Getty Images Plus

The vast majority of the world’s aquaculture production — 92% — occurs in Asian countries, according to NOAA. China produces the vast majority of that, but the next four top-producing countries are all also in Asia: India, Indonesia, Vietnam and Bangladesh, respectively in that order, according to Statista

Although the country consumes a lot of aquaculture products, NOAA says that the U.S. actually imports the vast majority —  84% — of its seafood. Half of that, the agency explains, is from aquaculture facilities. Only 5% of the country’s seafood supply comes from domestic aquaculture operations.

Oyster aquaculture in Oregon. Alex Manderson / Oregon Department of Agriculture

In the U.S., many states have aquaculture industries, but which has the largest might depend on the metric you want to consider. Louisiana, for example, has the largest number of aquaculture farms per the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s latest Census of Aquaculture. But when you look at the value of total products sold listed in the report, Mississippi comes out on top.

The federal government cites projections that the global aquaculture market will rise from its $204 billion value in 2020 to $262 billion before 2027. Other U.S. states are also looking to capitalize on the shift to aquaculture, including Maine, where several significant — and controversial — aquaculture facilities are under development.

Catfish ponds in Louisiana, which vary in color depending upon algae type and quantity. Scott Bauer / USDA

What Are Some Benefits of Aquaculture?

Preserve Wild Stocks

According to the ASC, “some 33% of wild fish stocks have already reached their biological limit because of destructive fishing practices and overfishing,” meaning fishers shouldn’t continue harvesting fish from those areas because the fish can’t replenish themselves. Proponents of aquaculture facilities say cultivating farms of aquatic species reduces pressure on wild stocks, giving them time to repopulate.

NOAA also touts aquaculture for its ability to “restore habitat and replenish wild stocks and rebuild populations of threatened and endangered species.”

A Chinook salmon farm in New Zealand. powerofforever / iStock / Getty Images Plus

Promote Societal Welfare

Hunger and poverty are complex societal problems experienced around the world. NOAA believes that increasing the amount of aquaculture — and thus the amount of farmed aquatic species for human consumption — would help lift people out of poverty and eliminate hunger with nutritious food.

“Leading health experts promote the value of adding seafood to one’s diet, especially for people who are pregnant or nursing and children,” explains NOAA. “Farmed seafood can lead to improved nutrition and food security for many communities.”

Southern bluefin tuna farmed in a pen in Port Lincoln, South Australia. David Fleetham / VW PICS / Universal Images Group via Getty Images

What Are Some Problems With Aquaculture?

Relatively Small Jobs Growth

Aquaculture isn’t expected to result in a huge number of jobs. Federal estimates suggest animal production and aquaculture workforce needs will actually shrink by 13.8% in the coming decade.

That appears to be the trend even in states where the economic impact of aquaculture has notably risen. In Maine, for example, the aquaculture industry directly employed 880 people in 2020, according to the Gulf of Maine Research Institute. But the center only expects the industry’s direct employment to rise to around 1,000 positions in the next decade.

A mussel harvester in Falmouth, Maine. Ben McCanna / Staff Photographer

Pollution

Anyone with a pet knows that one animal is messy. But multiply one animal by several dozen thousand, and you can have a notable source of pollution on your hands without monitoring and cleaning. According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, aquaculture is tied to a number of pollutants, including fish poop, uneaten fish feed and antibiotics. Nutrient pollution, which can lead to algae blooms, is also a problem from a facility with excess phosphorus, nitrogen and ammonia.

An algal bloom at an aquaculture farm in Thailand. boonsom / iStock / Getty Images Plus

In an open ocean or pond pen, all that pollution doesn’t stay neatly confined with the fish. It floats beyond its boundaries or spills out of its border, fouling the surrounding ecosystem. Land-based systems that have wastewater management systems can avoid pollution spillover.

The aquaculture industry also has a major marine plastic pollution problem, although it’s hard to pin down the severity given the difficulty of ocean pollution monitoring.

“Pathways for aquaculture-related litter… include rough weather, farmer behavior, inadequate access to recycling facilities, low price of consumable plastics and high cost of recycling,” according to a group of European researchers studying plastic pollution in the northeast Atlantic Ocean.

Disease

Excessive pollution and crowded conditions can stress out fish, making them more susceptible to disease. NOAA explains that sick and dead fish in the wild are eaten by predators but that disease-spreading individuals aren’t able to be thinned from the herd as easily in confinement. If an aquaculture facility isn’t diligent in its monitoring, disease can spread within the livestock or even beyond into the wild population.

The post Aquaculture 101: Everything You Need to Know appeared first on EcoWatch.

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Taking the electronic pulse of the circular economy

Taking the electronic pulse of the circular economy

In June, I had the privilege of attending the 2025 E-Waste World, Battery Recycling, Metal Recycling, and ITAD & Circular Electronics Conference & Expo events in Frankfurt, Germany.

Speaking in the ITAD & Circular Electronics track on a panel with global Circular Economy leaders from Foxway Group, ERI and HP, we explored the evolving role of IT asset disposition (ITAD) and opportunities in the circular electronics economy.

The event’s focus on advancing circular economy goals and reducing environmental impact delivered a series of insights and learnings. From this assembly of international expertise across 75+ countries, here are some points from the presentations that stood out for me:

1. Environmental impact of the digital economy

Digitalisation has a heavy material footprint in the production phase, and lifecycle thinking needs to guide every product decision. Consider that 81% of the energy a laptop uses in its lifetime is consumed during manufacture (1 tonne in manufacture is equal to 10,000 tonnes of CO2) and laptops are typically refreshed or replaced by companies every 3–4 years.

From 2018 to 2023, the average number of devices and connections per capita in the world increased by 50% (2.4 to 3.6). In North America (8.2 to 13.4) and Western Europe (5.6 to 9.4), this almost doubled. In 1960, only 10 periodic table elements were used to make phones. In 1990, 27 elements were used and now over 60 elements are used to build the smartphones that we have become so reliant on.

A key challenge is that low-carbon and digital technologies largely compete for the same minerals. Material resource extraction could increase 60% between 2020 and 2060, while demand for lithium, cobalt and graphite is expected to rise by 500% until 2050.

High growth in ICT demand and Internet requires more attention to the environmental footprint of the digital economy. Energy consumption of data centres is expected to more than double by 2026. The electronics industry accounts for over 4% of global GHG — and digitalisation-related waste is growing, with skewed impacts on developing countries.

E-waste is rising five times faster than recycling — 1 tonne of e-waste has a carbon footprint of 2 tonnes. Today’s solution? ‘Bury it or burn it.’ In terms of spent emissions, waste and the costs associated with end-of-life liabilities, PCBAs (printed circuit board assembly) cost us enormously — they generally achieve 3–5% recyclability (75% of CO2 in PCBAs is from components).

2. Regulating circularity in electronics

There is good momentum across jurisdictions in right-to-repair, design and labelling regulations; recycling targets; and voluntary frameworks on circularity and eco-design.

The EU is at the forefront. EU legislation is lifting the ICT aftermarket, providing new opportunities for IT asset disposition (ITAD) businesses. To get a sense, the global market for electronics recycling is estimated to grow from $37 billion to $108 billion (2022–2030). The value of refurbished electronics is estimated to increase from $85.9 billion to $262.2 billion (2022–2032). Strikingly, 40% of companies do not have a formal ITAD strategy in place.

Significantly, the EU is rethinking its Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) management targets, aligned with upcoming circularity and WEEE legislation, as part of efforts to foster the circular economy. A more robust and realistic circularity-driven approach to setting collection targets would better reflect various factors including long lifespans of electronic products and market fluctuations.

Australia and New Zealand lag the EU’s comprehensive e-waste mandated frameworks. The lack of a systematic approach results in environmental degradation and missed positioning opportunities for businesses in the circular economy. While Australia’s Senate inquiry into waste reduction and recycling recommended legislating a full circular economy framework — including for imported and local product design, financial incentives and regulatory enforcement, New Zealand remains the only OECD country without a national scheme to manage e-waste.

3. Extending product lifecycles

Along with data security and digital tools, reuse was a key theme in the ITAD & Circular Electronics track of the conference. The sustainable tech company that I lead, Greenbox, recognises that reuse is the simplest circular strategy. Devices that are still functional undergo refurbishment and are reintroduced into the market, reducing new production need and conserving valuable resources.

Conference presenters highlighted how repair over replacement is being legislated as a right in jurisdictions around the world. Resources are saved, costs are lowered, product life is extended, and people and organisations are empowered to support a greener future. It was pointed out that just 43% of countries have recycling policies, 17% of global waste is formally recycled, and less than 1% of global e-waste is formally repaired and reused.

Right to repair is a rising wave in the circular economy, and legislation is one way that civil society is pushing back on programmed obsolescence. Its global momentum continues at different speeds for different product categories — from the recent EU mandates to multiple US state bills (and some laws) through to repair and reuse steps in India, Canada, Australia and New Zealand.

The European Commission’s Joint Research Commission has done a scoping study to identify product groups under the Ecodesign framework that would be most relevant for implementing an EU-wide product reparability scoring system.

Attending this event with the entire electronic waste recycling supply chain — from peers and partners to suppliers and customers — underscored the importance of sharing best practices to address the environmental challenges that increased hardware proliferation and complex related issues are having on the world.

Ross Thompson is Group CEO of sustainability, data management and technology asset lifecycle management market leader Greenbox. With facilities in Brisbane, Sydney, Melbourne, Canberra, Auckland, Wellington and Christchurch, Greenbox Group provides customers all over the world a carbon-neutral supply chain for IT equipment to reduce their carbon footprint by actively managing their environmental, social and governance obligations.

Image credit: iStock.com/Mustafa Ovec

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