Innovation towards the sustainability of Mediterranean blue economy New Technologies for Marine Aquaculture Associate Professor Rigers BAKIU Agricultural University of Tirana (Tirana, AL) Albanian Center for Environmental Protection and Sustainable Development (Tirana, AL) • 03: Fishing and Aquaculture (p.104) 03.1: Fishing • 03.11 - Marine fishing • 03.12 - Freshwater fishing 03.2: Aquaculture (p.105) • 03.21 - Marine aquaculture • 03.22 - Freshwater aquaculture Mediterranean Basin • Mediterranean basin is characterized by oligo or ultra-oligo trophic waters with a high environmental variability and steep physical-chemical gradients within a relatively restricted region: salinity, temperature, alkalinity and stratification all tend to increase eastwards (Lacoue-Labarthe et al. 2015). Overall eight species contributed 90 per cent of • The term ‘a miniature ocean’ was coined to describe the Mediterranean Sea (Béthoux et al. 1999) and this Aquaculture has been extended to compare the production: Mediterranean to a giant mesocosm of the world’s oceans (Lejeusne et al. 2010). the European seabass, The Mediterranean basin is an area where different environmental, gilthead seabream, geomorphological, hydrogeological and climate regions meet and allow different trout, aquaculture systems and technologies to develop and succeed. common carp, tilapia, mussels, oysters and Manila clams. Mediterranean Basin • Aquaculture production of marine finfish was dominated by two main species, the European seabass (Dicentrarchus labrax) with 161 058 mt, and gilthead seabream (Sparus aurata) representing with 134 712 mt, in some countries also cultivated in brackish water. • In fact, until 1985, the production of the two main marine species was carried out mainly in land-based systems, such as ponds, and production from floating cages was limited to only 27 mt produced at artisanal level in inshore conditions. • In the early 1990s, the culture in floating cages increased progressively and many farms moved towards the open sea. In 2010 marine aquaculture in floating cages of finfish represented 82.33 per cent of the total production of these two. Marine Aquaculture Production Analyses and Technologies • Spain • Greece • Turkey • Albania Spain • In 2016, a total of 5.105 aquaculture establishments were in operation and producing in Spain. • Of these, 4.782 were marine molluscs aquaculture farms, • 200 were freshwater fish aquaculture farms, • 82 farms were on the coast, beaches, intertidal zones and estuaries, • and 41 were off shore sea cage farms. Spain •The harvest of aquaculture seabass in Spain in 2017 was 21.269 tonnes. •The Region of Murcia has led the production with 6.990 tonnes, followed by Canarias (5.900 tonnes), Comunidad Valenciana 5 (4.972 tonnes) Andalucía (3.261 tonnes) and Cataluña (146 tonnes). 3 1 2 4 Greece • Greece has more than 300 marine aquaculture farms, mostly near the Dodecanese Islands, Ionian Islands and Euboea. • In 2015, the industry raised at least 121,000 tons of sea bream, European bass and mussels. • Marine fish farming holds a dominant position representing 98% of the volume & value of farmed fish in Greece. • Greece ranks 2nd in terms of volume and value among the EU-28 in fish farming (following the UK) Greece Spatial distribution & employment in Marine Fish Farming • Greece 2017 63% of EU supply, 29% of global supply Greece Marine Organic fish farming • Organic production stands for 0,7% of total bass and bream production due to limited market • The initial legislative framework for organic aquaculture in the European Union (EU) was the Directive (EEC) 2092, which was recently replaced by the Directives (EC) 83407 and (EC) 88908 (European Union 1991, 2007, 2008). • At the same time ‘FAO guidelines for the production, processing, labelling and marketing of organically produced foods’ (FAO 2002) and the guidelines in Codex Alimentarius (FAO ⁄WHO 2001) were formulated, as well as general principles for organic production and processing by IFOAM (IFOAM 2007). • Subsequently, governmental bodies and private companies at a national level were formed and produced organic standards for various species in aquaculture (Bergleiter 2001; Brister & Kapuscinski 2001) Greece Marine Organic fish farming • Annual production for 2008 was estimated to be approximately 800–1000 tonnes of sea bass and sea This is because of the extended growing period of 20–24 months compared with 16–18 months for nonorganic fish, and bream (Miliou 2008; Skoufou 2008) (less than 1% of the increased water volumes required for the same level of the total Greek aquaculture production), with mean production, the increased cost of specialized fish feeds and the cost of certification. ex-farm prices at €8–10.5 per kg. The final product is exported to German and UK markets and a • Accordingly, retail prices varied between €15 and small amount is distributed to large supermarket retailers within Greece (Georgiopoulou 2008; Skoufou 2008). €24 per kg for both species; these prices are The European market potential for these species is estimated significantly higher than conventionally raised fish to be approximately 4000–6000 tonnes annually (Proffitt 2005); however, organic sea bass and sea bream are still considered to and similar to the price of ‘wild’ caught specimens. be ultra-niche market products. Turkey • Aquaculture is the fastest growing sector in Turkey by showing a growing volume by over 293% in the past decade. • Problems had been mainly occurred between sea farms and other coastal sectors such as tourism, environmental protection, maritime, recreation etc. in Aegean and Mediterranean coasts which were already established most of seabass and seabream farms. • The first marine aquaculture zones were determined in 1988 and were provided moving of sea farms from the in shore and coastal zones. Turkey • Offshore aquaculture is booming in Turkey Aquaculture is the fastest-growing sector in Turkey, which is now the largest fish-producing country in the Mediterranean Basin and the second-largest fish producer in Europe after Norway. In 2017, Turkey featured 425 marine farms, a large majority of which were located offshore. Of these, most farms are dedicated to sea bass and sea bream (total offshore production in 2016 = 150,000 tons). More than half of marine offshore farms in Turkey are located in Muglia in the Aegean Sea. • Turkey’s offshore sectors can certainly be considered a success story in terms of growth, profitability, and market share; every year, over 50 new facilities are installed and the often vertically integrated producers are celebrating record exports to more than 60 countries globally. An “offshore aquaculture” operation in Turkey is defined as one in waters of >40 meters, which can be found within the first nautical mile from shore. Offshore Finfish Aquaculture - Global Review and U.S. Prospects 2018 Turkey • Turkstat Albania Region of Vlora owns 85% of marine fish farms in Albania, while the remaining marine fish farms are located in Saranda and Shengjin region. • In Vlora and Saranda region there are present fish fattening units of marine fish species (gilthead seabream and European seabass), • Mussel farming activity is exclusively localised in Saranda and Shengjin regions, respectively. Albania • Following approval of the Law on Aquaculture in 2016, the licensing of new aquaculture farms will be allowed only when the plan of allocated zones has been established and approved. – on going study previous to the establishment of AZAs • Albania faces three main barriers to increasing its aquaculture production: high costs of inputs, low internal and external demand for its fish products, and outdated regulation for the aquaculture sector. • Albania does not comply with all the safety requirements of external markets for mussels (M. galoprovinciallis), which would be a guarantee to consumers about the quality of Albanian fish products and a needed step to increase demand and competitiveness for the industry. Albania Marine Fish Farming Albania Production Value and Trend Climate Change Impacts on Aquaculture • Specific measures to reduce aquaculture vulnerability in accordance with the ecosystem approach to aquaculture include: • improved management of farms and choice of farmed species; • improved spatial planning of farms that takes climate-related risks into account; • improved environmental monitoring involving users; • improved local, national and international coordination of prevention and mitigation actions. Climate Change Impacts on Aquaculture Species “The term “technological innovations” is applied here to alternative species and Aquaculture Systems climate adapted strains and aquaculture systems that reduce susceptibility to Monitoring Technologies climate change, as well as to technologies that can inform risks and adaptation.” Tackling Climate Change Impacts on Aquaculture • Macrofaunal communities have not shown deterioration but rather a small, yet statistically significant, improvement in diversity indices and ecological status indicators, and no significant change regarding bioturbation potential. • This indicated that processes involved in nutrient consumption and transfer are highly effective in such an oligotrophic environment. • The potential effects of climate change on the distribution of benthic species commonly used inmarine ecological quality assessment were investigated using a spatial modelling approach. • In this work, the relevance of the ecological groups that macrofaunal molluscs are assigned according