Aquaculture: Bighead, Silver And Black Carp

Now to transition from aquacultures detractions into a potential situation that would be very interesting if it were to take place as it goes along with the topic, benefits of aquaculture. It is fairly obvious in the past decade that Bighead, Silver and Black Carp have become a serious annoyance to the many residents of the Mississippi River basin. I’m not even going to mention how terrified everyone is of the possibility of a Great Lakes invasion. Other than that, they have devastated any ecosystem they’ve come across since their arrival in the states. In an article by the Great Lakes Fishery Commission Michael Hansen said, “In some parts of the Mississippi, the Asian carp make up nearly 97% of the area’s biomass”. Now, …show more content…
At least for the time being, a tropical to slightly warmer than temperate habitat seems to be ideal; at least so it can get cold without having too many fish borderline hibernate in the cold ponds. Why is aquaculture such an ideal approach to take? It allowed mankind to far surpass the capabilities of our planet. It’s almost on the level of Norman Borlaug is as to how many lives have been saved and changed because of our ability.
An essential question; Is practicing and applying the science of aquaculture the best long term solution for areas of the world affected by depleted fish stocks? Probably, but at what cost? Along with producing, “66 million tons of farmed fish (Larsen and Roney)”, aquaculture has become a leading environmental concern because when not implemented correctly, can be more polluting than the auto manufacturing industry and as taxing on its surrounding ecosystem as toxic dumping. All that said, aquaculture really has been repping itself all that well. That brings up the question, how can one make it environmental friendly? An article on aquaculture from the “SeaFood Watch” segment of the “Monterey Bay Aquarium”, stated that raising fish in captivity affects the surrounding environment with “excessive concentrations of waste, creating harmful chemicals” (, certain fish becoming invasive species by escaping from their respective facility. It’s near impossible to solve …show more content…
The aquaculture industries annual growth rate of seven percent that was mentioned earlier is largely made possible by it’s rapidly developing tech options that facilitate easier ways to keep track of the fish, better gene selection and splicing, more effective containment systems, more efficient creation of and distribution of feed and aeration systems(Food and Drug Organization of the United Nations(FAO)). More accurate and in general better methods of measuring water temps along with other elements as pH and nitrate levels is also necessary in how biologists and engineers can work together in most fish farming operations. One interesting aspect of how two very different worlds of commodity intertwine is how the aquaculture industry often “adapting offshore oil rig construction, increase the possibilities for a progressive offshore expansion of aquaculture using robust cages (FAO). The technology that is used in fish farming has already and is going to be such a determining factor in how the world can work together to save our oceans. This