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Aquaculture production has very significantly��increased in tonnage and value over the last��decades. It has been��seen as a potential solution��to replace declining wild fishery stocks, addressing the UN Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 2 of��food safety, and��many other SDGs. However, this impressive growth in��worldwide aquaculture production has also��been associated with critical environmental��and social drawbacks,��highlighting the need for new approaches��reconciling aquaculture with conservation��and societal benefits.��

The potential of Nature-based Solutions

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NbS potential is examined by looking at the ������ϲʿ�������ֳ�ֱ�� definition, principles��and criteria proposed by Cohen-Shacham et��al, and the recently developed ������ϲʿ�������ֳ�ֱ�� Global Standard for NbS (������ϲʿ�������ֳ�ֱ��, 2020a). ��are shown as having a strong��anthropogenic connotation,��and they highlight��that the central scientific��concept of NbS is embedded in ecosystem-based��approaches and management.

Instruments for the evaluation of ecosystem��services (ES)��and the degree of ecological��engineering��are essential��parts in NbS��design and assessment. In this context, the report then reviews the eight criteria of the Global��Standard, taking into consideration the��prevailing issues in aquaculture, such as the Ecosystem Approach for��Aquaculture (EAA).����

NbS and Aquaculture

The study then examines the NbS framework as�� an opportunity to enhance the sustainability��of aquaculture��systems by focusing on three��aspects:

• The Global Standard may provide��opportunities to re-establish and further��develop traditional local savoir-faire��in aquaculture, as advocated by . The restoration��of traditional coastal ponds in Hawai’i��illustrates this situation.��
• EAA being widely recognised��as being so far disappointing in its��actual implementation and expansion��since its launch 10 years ago and exploring how��the release��of the Global Standard��could��offer an opportunity in ‘reinvigorating’��EAA and reduce weaknesses��that have been acknowledged.��
• The Global Standard could provide��new opportunities to explore synergies��between aquaculture and marine��protection. One of the expected positive outcomes,��when the NbS framework is applied to��aquaculture, is its ability to translate the��complexity of assessing the sustainability��of coastal social-ecological systems,��including an aquaculture component, into��practical, local and specific terms.��

Do aquaculture systems qualify?

Several examples of��aquaculture systems indicate that��some may be considered as potential
NbS. This is��provided that a full and holistic��assessment is made on each aquaculture-related��solution, which subsequently shows that a��candidate meets all eight NbS criteria and is��documented to an acceptable level to��assess benefits, impacts, trade-offs, and��positive and negative externalities.

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However, the report argues that the type and role of engineering and human intervention are still being debated among various authors, so a discussion and clarification are therefore still needed to determine whether aquaculture-related systems are considered as acceptable NbS, considering the extent of human-based artificial inputs and actions involved in the system. It may be difficult in aquaculture to distinguish between a solution that is dependent on ‘natural’ ecosystems, and a solution that is based upon a quite artificial aquaculture system, well managed, but decoupled from ‘naturalness’..

Similarly, it might also be critical for��some aquaculture��systems to provide��clear evidence of a ‘net benefit’ for
biodiversity as required by Criterion 3 of��the Global Standard.��For instance, even for seaweed farming��in coastal conditions, the Zanzibar��case��study shows that precautions��need to be taken in the management��of aquaculture activity regarding the��integrity of seagrass beds.��

The full report and its development support

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The report, published by ������ϲʿ�������ֳ�ֱ��, was��developed in the context of the and financed by the , under the umbrella of the , under the lead of experts from the of the ������ϲʿ�������ֳ�ֱ�� Commission on Ecosystem Management (CEM). ��
Learn more:

������ϲʿ�������ֳ�ֱ�� CEM Ecosystem-based Aquaculture Group (E-bAG)

For more information, please contact:��[email protected] ��

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