Environmental Impacts of Land-Based Aquaculture

A special issue of Fishes (ISSN 2410-3888). This special issue belongs to the section "Environment and Climate Change".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (20 November 2021) | Viewed by 21160

Special Issue Editor

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Global aquaculture is a rapidly growing agricultural sector contributing to global food production. Several aquatic species are farmed using a range of intensive or extensive production systems in inland and coastal aquatic ecosystems, supporting the need to feed the rising human population. However, the rising aquaculture sector is facing several environmental challenges, including competition with other agricultural sectors for water, land, and ecological resources.

A particularly promising method of production is land-based aquaculture. Land-based fish farms are contributing globally to the growth and value of the sector by cultivating several freshwater fish species, including Salmonidae cyprinidae and eel species. The value of inland aquaculture exceeds by far the production of marine floating cages and other offshore aquaculture production methods.

The aim of this Special Issue entitled “Environmental Impacts of Land-Based Aquaculture” is to provide a platform to present water quality and other environmental issues and prospects for sustainable inland water aquaculture development. Contributions which address water quality, fish welfare, environmental issues, and aquaculture engineering and recirculating aquaculture systems of land-based aquaculture are particularly welcomed.

Prof. Dr. Cosmas Nathanailides
Guest Editor

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Keywords

  • inland aquaculture
  • ponds
  • recirculating system
  • Salmonidae cyprinidae

Published Papers (4 papers)

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Research

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13 pages, 298 KiB  
Article
Effects of Dissolved Potassium on Growth Performance, Body Composition, and Welfare of Juvenile African Catfish (Clarias gariepinus)
by Lisa Carolina Wenzel, Sebastian Marcus Strauch, Ep Eding, Francisco Xose Presas-Basalo, Berit Wasenitz and Harry Wilhelm Palm
Fishes 2021, 6(2), 11; https://doi.org/10.3390/fishes6020011 - 28 Mar 2021
Cited by 10 | Viewed by 4736
Abstract
Optimal crop production in aquaponics is influenced by water pH and potassium concentrations. The addition of potassium hydroxide (KOH) into the recirculating aquaculture system (RAS) may benefit aquaponics by increasing the water pH for better biofilter activity and supplementing K for better plant [...] Read more.
Optimal crop production in aquaponics is influenced by water pH and potassium concentrations. The addition of potassium hydroxide (KOH) into the recirculating aquaculture system (RAS) may benefit aquaponics by increasing the water pH for better biofilter activity and supplementing K for better plant growth and quality. We investigated the growth, feed conversion, body composition and welfare indicators of juvenile African catfish (Clarias gariepinus) treated with four concentrations of K (K0 = 2, K200 = 218, K400 = 418, and K600 = 671 mg L−1). While growth, feed conversion and final body composition were unaffected, the feeding time and individual resting significantly increased with increasing K+. The swimming activity and agonistic behavior were reduced significantly under increased concentrations of K+. Leftover feed and the highest number of skin lesions were observed under K600. We suggest that K+ concentrations between 200 and 400 mg L−1 can improve the welfare status of juvenile African catfish. This enables the application of KOH in RAS to supply alkalinity to achieve optimum nitrification at minimum water exchange and improve the nutritional profile of the process water with benefits for the welfare status of African catfish and aquaponics plant production and quality. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Environmental Impacts of Land-Based Aquaculture)
11 pages, 1195 KiB  
Article
Slight Increases in Salinity Improve Muscle Quality of Grass Carp (Ctenopharyngodon idellus)
by Xi Zhang, Zhiyuan Shen, Tianpeng Qi, Rujuan Xi, Xiao Liang, Li Li, Rong Tang and Dapeng Li
Fishes 2021, 6(1), 7; https://doi.org/10.3390/fishes6010007 - 24 Feb 2021
Cited by 15 | Viewed by 3787
Abstract
Fish muscle quality is an important parameter in the aquaculture industry. In this study, we analyzed and compared the muscle quality of grass carp (Ctenopharyngodon idellus) cultured at salinities of 0‰, 3‰, and 6‰ (GC0, GC3, GC6). There was no significant [...] Read more.
Fish muscle quality is an important parameter in the aquaculture industry. In this study, we analyzed and compared the muscle quality of grass carp (Ctenopharyngodon idellus) cultured at salinities of 0‰, 3‰, and 6‰ (GC0, GC3, GC6). There was no significant difference in crude protein and crude fat content of muscle between GC0 and GC3. Crude fat was significantly lower in GC6 compared to the other groups. GC3 and GC6 had higher hydroxyproline content, which suggested that these groups had higher collagen content. GC3 and GC6 had higher contents of free amino acids and umami amino acids than GC0, but there was no significant difference in sweet or sour amino-acid content among groups. GC3 and GC6 had better texture properties, including hardness, gumminess, chewiness, resilience, and springiness, than GC0. GC3 had the highest water-holding capacity among the groups. As the salinity increased, the diameter of muscle fibers decreased and the sarcolemma showed a thickening trend. These results suggest that a slight increase in salinity (i.e., 3‰) can effectively improve the muscle quality of grass carp. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Environmental Impacts of Land-Based Aquaculture)
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12 pages, 1273 KiB  
Article
Multispecies Fresh Water Algae Production for Fish Farming Using Rabbit Manure
by Adandé Richard, Liady Mouhamadou Nourou Dine, Djidohokpin Gildas, Adjahouinou Dogbè Clément, Azon Mahuan Tobias Césaire, Micha Jean-Claude and Fiogbe Didier Emile
Fishes 2020, 5(4), 35; https://doi.org/10.3390/fishes5040035 - 30 Nov 2020
Viewed by 3184
Abstract
The current study aims at determining the optimal usage conditions of rabbit manure in a multispecies fresh water algae production for fish farming. This purpose, the experimental design is made of six treatments in triplicate including one control T0, T1 [...] Read more.
The current study aims at determining the optimal usage conditions of rabbit manure in a multispecies fresh water algae production for fish farming. This purpose, the experimental design is made of six treatments in triplicate including one control T0, T1, T2, T3, T4, T5 corresponding respectively to 0, 300, 600, 900, 1200, 1500 g/m3 of dry rabbit manure put into buckets containing 40 L of demineralized water and then fertilized. The initial average seeding density is made of 4 × 103 ± 2.5 × 102 cells/L of Chlorophyceae, 1.5 × 103 ± 1 × 102 cells/L of Coscinodiscophyceae, 3 × 103 ± 1.2 × 102 cells/L of Conjugatophyceae, 2.8 × 103 ± 1.5 × 102 cells/L of Bascillariophyceae, and 2.5 × 103 ± 1.4 × 102 cells/L of Euglenophyceae. During the experiments, the effects of these treatments on abiotic and biotic parameters (chlorophyll-a concentration, phytoplankton density and algal density) of different production media were monitored. Results show that average density of different phytoplankton classes is higher in treatment T5 (7.91 × 108 ± 6.78 × 107 cells/L) followed by T4 (5.56 × 108 ± 4.27 × 107 cells/L), T2 (3.87 × 108 ± 3.10 × 108 cells/L), T3 (3.79 × 108 ± 3.18 × 108 cells/L, with high significant difference (F (4,84) = 5, 35, p < 0.00). Chl-a concentration varied from 0.07 ± 0.05 mg/L (T0) to 14.47 ± 12.50 mg/L (T5) with high significant differences observed among treatments (F (5,83) = 3,09, p = 0,01). In addition, fourteen (14) species belonging to eight (8) families, five (5) classes and three (3) phyla were identified in our different production media. During the culture, Chlorophyceae class was the most represented in all treatments with 5 species (36% of the specific diversity) while Euglenophyceae class (7%) was the least represented with only one (01) species. According to these results, treatments T2 (600 g/m3), T3 (900 g/m3) and T4 (1200 g/m3) of dry rabbit manure are those worthy to be recommended as an alternative for a low cost massive production of multispecies freshwater algae that can be easily used by freshwater zooplankton and macroinvertebrates. Indeed, despite the best performances that it shows, treatment T5, presents important eutrophication’s risks. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Environmental Impacts of Land-Based Aquaculture)
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Review

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15 pages, 967 KiB  
Review
Probiotics Have the Potential to Significantly Mitigate the Environmental Impact of Freshwater Fish Farms
by Cosmas Nathanailides, Markos Kolygas, Konstantina Choremi, Theodoros Mavraganis, Evangelia Gouva, Kosmas Vidalis and Fotini Athanassopoulou
Fishes 2021, 6(4), 76; https://doi.org/10.3390/fishes6040076 - 08 Dec 2021
Cited by 16 | Viewed by 7704
Abstract
Probiotics for freshwater fish farming can be administered as single or multiple mixtures. The expected benefits of probiotics include disease prophylaxis, improved growth, and feed conversion parameters, such as the feed conversion rate (FCR) and specific growth rate (SGR). In the current work, [...] Read more.
Probiotics for freshwater fish farming can be administered as single or multiple mixtures. The expected benefits of probiotics include disease prophylaxis, improved growth, and feed conversion parameters, such as the feed conversion rate (FCR) and specific growth rate (SGR). In the current work, we review the impact of probiotics on freshwater finfish aquaculture. Data were gathered from articles published during the last decade that examined the effects of probiotics on fish growth, FCR, and water quality in freshwater fishponds/tanks. While the expected benefits of probiotics are significant, the reviewed data indicate a range in the level of effects, with an average reduction in ammonia of 50.7%, SGR increase of 17.1%, and FCR decrease of 10.7%. Despite the variability in the reported benefits, probiotics appear to offer a practical solution for sustainable freshwater aquaculture. Disease prophylaxis with probiotics can reduce the need for antibiotics and maintain gut health and feed conversion. Considering that fish feed and waste are two significant parameters of the aquaculture ecological footprint, it can be argued that probiotics can contribute to reducing the environmental impact of aquaculture. In this direction, it would be beneficial if more researchers incorporated water quality parameters in future aquaculture research and protocols to minimize aquaculture’s environmental impact. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Environmental Impacts of Land-Based Aquaculture)
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