Water quality

Shrimp farming is one of the fastest growing aquaculture sectors in many parts of the world and also one of the most controversial. Rapid expansion of this sector generated income fo many countries, but has been accompanied by rising concerns over environmental and social impacts. The International Principles for Responsible Shrimp Farming provide the basis upon which stakeholders can collaborate for a more sustainable development of shrimp farming.

In order to provide practical and effective technical guidance for shrimp hatchery management, it is necessary to establish a set of better management practices (BMPs) which underpin an effective hatchery production system. This document is not a complete manual on the management of P. monodon hatcheries but concentrates on the implementation of BMPs for the hatchery covering all of the critical stages and processes in the production cycle, which are currently believed to be causing problems in Vietnamese hatcheries. 

Sổ tay nẩy với mục đích giúp đỡ cho cán bộ khuyến ngư hướng dẫn người nông dân kỹ thuật nuôi tôm nhằm mục đích đạt được sản lương và thu nhập ngày càng cao trong hệ thống nuôi kết hơp tôm - rừng ở Đồng bằng Sông Cửu Long. Với những kỹ thuật đơn giản, thông thường giúp cho ngư dân từng bước gia tăng sản lương mà ít bị rủi ro.

This manual has been prepared to assist extension officers to advise farmers on techniques for improving yields and farm income in mixed shrimp farming-mangrove forestry farming systems in the Mekong Delta. It focuses mainly on simple, common sense techniques that will allow farmers to make step-by-step improvements to production without taking unnecessary risks. The manual is based on a 6-year collaborative research and development project between the Governments of Vietnam and Australia.

This report provides details of the activities and outcomes of work conducted under the World Bank, NACA, WWF and FAO consortium program on Shrimp Farming and the Environment. The report synthesises the major findings of the consortium program from 1999-2002. It includes the outcome from a stakeholder workshop that discussed the program findings, hosted by the World Bank in Washington DC, in March 2002.

Belize Aquaculture, Ltd., has developed a superintensive shrimp aquaculture system operating in lined ponds with heavy mechanical aeration and water recirculation. The pilot study has been in progress for two years. Shrimp production has ranged from less than 8,000 kg/ha to more than 20,000 kg/ha per crop. Because the Belize Aquaculture, Ltd., production system appears to address a number of the environmental impacts of traditional shrimp aquaculture systems, a case study of this unique system was conducted.

This report reviews the state of shrimp aquaculture developent in Mexico, including its impact on employment, complexities surrounding coastal property rights, investment and health issues. Regulation and monitoring of the industry are still in their infancy, but SEMARNAP is putting in place a system that may be able to ensure that aquaculture will be sustainable. More effective involvement of the NGO community in the aquaculture sector may also help to monitor and ensure compliance with environmental regulations.

Several stakeholder groups have formulated and recommended the implementation of better management practices (BMPs)aimed at improving production efficiency and/or ameliorating impacts of shrimp farming on the environment. In this study, an economic optimisation model with an environmental component was used to evaluate the effects of five specific BMPs on the profitability, optimal selection of management strategies, and net quantities of nutrients discharged by semi-intensive shrimp farms in Honduras and small-scale operations in Honduras and Nicaragua.

Various substances in shrimp farm ponds can contaminate waters, including nutrients, metabolic wastes, veterinary chemicals, and suspended soil particles from erosion. This report discusses ways to monitor these aspects of water quality, which is important from two standpoints for shrimp farmers. Incoming water used top supply shrimp ponds must be healthful and free of toxins to protect the growing shrimp, and effluent must be clean enough to avoid harming aquatic ecosystems and water quality standards downstream.

A series of research studies were conducted to refine existing traditional culture practices for the tiger shrimp, Penaeus monodon. Natural food produced in a shrimp pond through fertilisation is not fully consumed in the first two months at a stocking rate of 5,000 postlarvae per hectare. Natural food produced by organic and inorganic fertilisation using the traditional practice can sustain an optimal growth of shrimp at a density of 20,000 postlarvae per hectare for a period of 60 days.

This article compares the use of chemical and biological amendments in shrimp farming in Asia and the Americas. The information comes mainly from the author’s experience in Thailand and Ecuador, as well as from the literature. The amendments are discussed according to three major categories: (1) water and soil quality management products, (2) biocides, and (3) feed additives. Certain agents, while necessary to successful shrimp farming, should be used only when needed and in a safe and responsible manner. 

The goal of this project was to optimise the economic yield from mixed shrimp aquaculture-mangrove forestry farming systems in Ca Mau Province, Vietnam, in a sustainable manner. Specific objectives were to investigate factors controlling the yields of shrimp and wood from shrimp farming-mangrove systems, experiment with shrimp pond and mangrove forest management to evaluate different culture options, identify improved practices and assist government to transfer the results of the project to the wider coastal farming community.

In this issue:

Freshwater prawn Macrobrachium nobilii for rural nutrition. Snapshots of a socially responsible farm in Sri Lanka. Introduction of rainbow trout in Nepal. Tilapia seed production in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. Seaweed mariculture - scope and potential in India. Growth enhancement of carp and prawn through dietary suppliementation with salt. Fertilisation and water quality management in small ponds. The "Gher Revolution". Exercising responsibilities to tackle aquatic animal disease. Immunostimulants in aquaculture.

In this issue:

Fertilisation, soil and water quality management. Commercialisation of giant freshwater prawn culture in India. Aquaculture in reservoir-fed canal systems. Production of black-lip pearl oyster Pinctada margaritifera. Hybridisation hassles. Breeding sea cucumber Holothuria scabra in Vietnam. Use of palm kernel meal in feeds. Getting the most out of your feed. Marine finfish aquaculture in Myanmar. Penaeus monodon culture in low-salinity areas. Fisheries and aquaculture in Nepal.

In this issue:

Aquaculture for poverty alleviation and food security. Shrimp pond waste management. Properties of liming materials. Seed production of mud crab Scylla spp. The dilemmas of strain selection. Seed production of the crucifix crab Charybdis feriatus. A general approach to disease treatment and control. Breeding and seed production of mangrove snapper Lutjanus argentimaculatus. Responsible use of antibiotics in shrimp farming. Health management for cultured marine fishes. Molecular methods for rapid detection of pathogens in seafood.

In this issue:

Prawn farm energy audits. Freshwater fish farming and poverty alleviation in Bangladesh. Artificial propagation for conservation of endangered species. Sewerage-fed aquaculture systems of Kolkata. Rice-fish farming in India. The use of lime, gypsum, alum and potassium permanganate in water quality management. Fish gene technology research in China. Low-salinity shrimp farms. Seed production of Clarius batrachus. Supplying good-quality seed for sustainable aquaculture and more.