Post a comment on the text below

Aquaculture affects water quality (through increased nutrient load and emission of cleaning agents and medicinal products) as well as the hydromorphology of aquatic ecosystems. Aquaculture can also affect wild stocks if cultured organisms escape into the natural water environment. At the same time, aquaculture can also act as a catalyst of ecosystem balance, e.g. by retaining water in the landscape and buffering extreme rainfall patterns with drought and flood protection through large ponds (Jeffrey et al., 2014). Here, sustainability plans bear great potential. European legislation in place tries to minimize the adverse environmental effects of aquaculture, for instance planning and development of new aquaculture operations has to be in line with the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) and Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA) directives. According to these directives, environmental concerns have to be included early on in the planning process which helps to avoid or minimise negative impacts. In terms of regulation, measures for the aquaculture sector include consistent licensing to include mitigation measures in a coherent framework, as well as the development of a protocol of best practices to ensure interoperability and clarity for aquaculture owners. Regulatory codes for monitoring as well as sustainable management practices should follow, including the use of latest water purification and monitoring technologies. Finally, aquaculture should be integrated into further spatial planning tools, especially in the light of river basin management plans, and sufficient polluter-pays sanctions should be put in place. Aquaculture is a key component of both the Common Fisheries Policy and the Blue Growth Agenda to support sustainable growth in the sector, therefore further coherence of their targets with EU water policy objectives needs to be achieved.

Box 5  Code of good practice for aquaculture in Scotland

In Scotland, the Scottish Salmon Producers’ Organisation has approved a code of good practice for finfish aquaculture to couple production with health and sustainability aspects. The Organisation committed to sustainable development practices in aquaculture, ranging from sustainable use of natural heritage to the sustainability of feed ingredients themselves. One of the main targets of the code is the minimisation of the environmental impact of aquaculture sites in the Scottish environment, including both freshwater and seawater lochs and tanks. The code is audited by independent actors, which ensures compliance with reliable sustainability standards (Scottish Salmon Producers' Organisation, 2020).