Shrimp Farming and the Environment - Library

governments, banks, and international agencies with caution. However, the potential benefits to bederived from shrimp farming are so great that every effort should be made to meet these conditions.Reasons for unsustainable shrimp cultureShrimp farming has often turned out to be unsustainable in practice. It is important to understand whyif we are to make it more, or “acceptably,” sustainable. The lack of sustainability to date has resultedmainly from the following factors:• It is a relatively new activity that can be extremely profitable; it has therefore tended todevelop overly rapidly, without adequate planning or regulation;• Since it generates significant foreign currency earnings, many governments are keen topromote rather than restrain the shrimp industry (thus promoting environmental conservation)by offering generous tax incentives and other inducements;• Disease, and the use of chemicals associated with disease prevention and treatment, are majorproblems in the industry, related partly to the unplanned and unregulated development alreadynoted;• It is possible to farm shrimp in areas where resource use rights or ownership are often unclearor lacking; this situation can contribute to resource appropriation by more powerful sectors ofsociety, which may in some cases lead to corruption, social unrest, and violence;• It is possible to farm shrimp in areas (such as salt marshes, sand-flats and mud-flats, andmangroves) that have been little developed because of their unsuitability for agriculture orurban /industrial development; and these areas often have high environmental value;• It is possible to farm shrimp in inland areas where it may compete with agricultural activitiessuch as rice farming; this may result in accidental or irresponsible practices which result insalinization of land with agricultural potential, and lead to social conflict;• Shrimp aquaculture generally requires significant investment in either land and water (formore extensive systems) or inputs (for more intensive systems); the need for investment fundsmakes the activity less accessible to the poorer sectors of society, and it may thereforeincrease inequity; and• Intensive shrimp farming still depends heavily on fishmeal in formulated feeds; given the stateof capture fisheries and the increasing demand for fish products, the price may increasesignificantly in the future, undermining the profitability of intensive aquaculture.Conditions for improved sustainabilityIt is clear that more sustainable shrimp farming will be difficult to achieve without a comprehensiveand integrated set of interventions and initiatives by government, development agencies, planners,extension agents, farmers, NGOs, processors/traders, and researchers. Together, these parties shouldpromote or facilitate:• More rational and appropriate land and water use;• More rational and equitable resource access or allocation;• Conflict resolution;• Protection of the environment;• Improved monitoring and regulation related to disease incidence; and• Improved water management, supply, and wastewater disposal.The role of national and local governments in coordinating and promoting appropriate interventionswill be crucial to the future sustainability of shrimp culture. Legal and planning frameworks may needto be adapted and improved to take account of the specific requirements for the industry’ssustainability. Ideally, these frameworks would specifically address the needs of coastal aquaculture(FAO 1998), and would include:• Provision for sector environmental assessment, leading to the creation of provincial or districtlevelcoastal aquaculture development and environmental management plans;• Provisions for the development of national guidelines or codes of practice for the design andoperation of coastal aquaculture, and/or procedures for developing such guidelines atprovincial or district levels; and72