Coastal Shrimp Aquaculture in Thailand: Key Issues for Research

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!An Assessment of the Status of the ShrimpFarming Industry in ThailandSue Jenkins*, Paul T. Smith†, Siri Tookwinas§ and Michael J. PhillipsAbstractThe shrimp aquaculture industry in Thailand has expanded greatly over the last twodecades. There was a rapid expansion from 1988 to 1995 but more recently shrimpproduction has decreased and stabilised at around 234,000 t in 1998. In this chapter,the development of the shrimp farming industry in Thailand is reviewed.The development of shrimp farming in Thailand has generated substantial foreignrevenue from shrimp export, and associated industries have provided economic booststo the Thai economy. In rural areas, this has often resulted in improvements in infrastructure,such as roads and electricity supplies. Nevertheless, environmental degradationhas occurred where farms were located in unsuitable sites and where farmdensities exceeded the carrying capacity of the environment. Although many have benefitedfinancially through farm ownership or industry employment, there are caseswhere some have been disadvantaged or displaced by the industry.This review finds that research has often neglected many of the problems andissues that are faced by the shrimp farming industry. Much of the past and ongoingresearch efforts have been largely directed toward solving production problems as theyhave arisen. Instances of crop failure have commanded the attention of most researchers,and hence water quality problems and disease syndromes have been focused upon.However, these crop failures are, in most instances, symptoms of underlying problemsrather than the cause of unsustainability. Hence, this review tries to identify keyresearchable constraints to development of a sustainable industry with the assistance ofmany eminent people in Thailand, thus generating a list of 25 key issues for research.Finally, many of the constraints and issues that have been identified are interrelatedor interdependent. This suggests that collaboration between researchers and linkagesbetween projects will be essential to developing a sustainable shrimp farmindustry. Hence, it is necessary for all those currently concerned with developing a sustainableshrimp farm industry in Thailand to identify the gaps in the research effortsand to formulate a coordinated and integrated approach to future research. Thisapproach must be fitted within the framework of the existing research bodies in Thailand.The benefit to Thailand of regional cooperation in such research is also recognised.* Tropical Forest Research Centre, Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation(CSIRO), PO Box 780, Atherton, Queensland 4883, Australia.† University of Western Sydney Macarthur, PO Box 555, Campbelltown, New South Wales 2560,Australia.§ Coastal Aquaculture Division, Department of Fisheries, Chatuchak, Bangkok 10900, Thailand. Network of Aquaculture Centres in Asia–Pacific (NACA), PO Box 1040, Kasetsart Post Office, Bangkok10903, Thailand.)#
!Shrimp Farming in ThailandOver the last two decades, Thailand’s coastal shrimp aquaculture industry hasexpanded dramatically, providing considerable economic benefits for farmers and thediverse industries which service and support shrimp farming. Export of shrimp andshrimp products has earned the country substantial foreign revenue. However, industryexpansion has not been without problems and there is concern within the Government,the industry and scientific communities that farm viability is threatened by acombination of poor management practices, pollution by farm effluent and viral diseases.These fears are founded on the experiences of 1988 in the once thriving shrimpaquaculture industry in Taiwan (Liao 1989; Lin 1989; Chen 1990), the extensive croplosses in China in 1993 (Anon. 1994c), the losses sustained by Vietnamese shrimpaquaculturalists (Anon. 1994b), and recent declines in annual production in Thailandand other countries in the region (Flegel 1996; Funge-Smith 1997; Anon. 1998a,b).In view of these concerns and problems, this study assessed the current state ofthe shrimp farming industry in Thailand, examined factors contributing to farm problemsand identified researchable constraints to the development of a sustainableindustry. The specific aims of the study were:1. to examine the current practices of the shrimp farming industry in Thailand, thehistory of the industry’s development and the goals and policies of the Thai governmentregarding the industry;2. to examine current concepts of sustainable development and assess research intoshrimp aquaculture; and3. to identify key researchable issues which researchers have not yet addressed andwhich are impeding development of a sustainable shrimp farming industry inThailand.What is sustainable shrimp aquaculture?For farmers, investors and government agencies concerned with financial expansionand export revenue, sustainability of shrimp aquaculture focuses on the maintenanceof at least the current level of production and income. The desirable situationfor most investors is to see an increase in financial returns over time, keeping upwith, or ideally, outpacing alternative investments. Industry expansion or intensificationof production may be needed to achieve this.For those who are concerned primarily with environmental conservation, sustainableshrimp aquaculture refers to shrimp production which has minimal negativeimpacts on the environment and can be maintained at a level which does not causeprogressive environmental degradation.The failure of shrimp farms in Taiwan, and more recently in parts of Thailand andelsewhere, was attributed to a deterioration in environmental conditions. This hasforcibly brought to the attention of the industry that sustainable financial returns willonly be achieved if environmental concerns are addressed. This coincides with thebeginning of a worldwide recognition that the natural environment imposes constraintson the size of economic systems and that ignoring these constraints may ultimatelylead to economic collapse.)$
Page 8 and 9: !The 1994 Workshop had a working hy
Page 11 and 12: !The Workshop at Hat Yai, SongkhlaA
Page 13: !ReferenceSmith, P.T., ed.. 1999. T
Page 18 and 19: ! !Table 1. World production (# 1,0
Page 20 and 21: !Domestic and world demandJapan is
Page 22 and 23: !Intensification of farms has been
Page 24 and 25: !no significant difference between
Page 26 and 27: !Production Practices and Technique
Page 28 and 29: !use water which is almost fresh (F
Page 30 and 31: !mended quantities for application
Page 32 and 33: !the biological processes in sedime
Page 34 and 35: !factors (Fegan 1994). Environmenta
Page 36 and 37: !Acid sulphate soils occur in most
Page 38 and 39: during the rainy season, some deter
Page 40 and 41: Land subsidenceCoastal land subside
Page 42 and 43: first when an area becomes environm
Page 44 and 45: !Administration. Their work has inv
Page 46 and 47: agriculture, selects coastal land p
Page 48 and 49: Sustainability, Sustainable Develop
Page 50 and 51: cultural and environmental asset va
Page 52 and 53: $+Table 12. (cont’d) Impediments
Page 54 and 55: $#Table 12. (cont’d) Impediments
Page 56 and 57: $%Table 12. (cont’d) Impediments
Page 58 and 59: capacities of alternative organisms
Page 60 and 61: sources. This is one of the greates
Page 62 and 63: Table 13. (cont’d) Summary of the
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Boonyapiwat, S. 1989. Species of ph
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Katesombun, B. 1992. Aquaculture pr
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Sirisup, S. 1988 Socio-economic cha
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!In the preliminary analysis, the s
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!until all variables had been teste
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!quality problem over the past 3 ye
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!Figure 1. Characterisation of prov
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!Variables Contributing to Shrimp P
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!Figure 5. Relationship between ave
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!southern). The linear regression m
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!Appendix. Results of logistic regr
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!2) Trat ProvinceClassification tab
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!Chi-square df significanceModel Ch
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!8) Satun ProvinceClassification ta
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!Variables in the equationConstant
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!A total of 49 participants were in
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! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! !Fi
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!All issues are listed in Appendice
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!!were short term and one issue was
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!reared broodstock (issue 71). They
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!!Two participants commented that i
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mation transfer and training. This
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108Appendix 1. (cont’d) Descripti
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112Appendix 2. Descriptive statisti
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Appendix 5. (cont’d) Descriptive
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Appendix 7. Descriptive statistics
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Appendix 7. (cont’d) Descriptive
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!ParticipantsAustraliaDr Paul T. Sm
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