Assessing Alternative Aquaculture Technologies: Life Cycle Assessment Of Salmonid Culture Systems In Canada

摘要

This study employed life cycle assessment (LCA) to quantify and compare the potential environmental impacts of culturing salmonids in a conventional marine net-pen system with those of three reportedly environmentally-friendly alternatives; a marine floating bag system; a land-based saltwater flow-through system; and a land-based freshwater recirculating system.Results of the study indicate that while the use of these closed-containment systems may reduce the local ecological impacts typically associated with net-pen salmon farming,the increase in material and energy demands associated with their use may result in significantly increased contributions to several environmental impacts of global concern,including global warming,non-renewable resource depletion,and acidification.It is recommended that these unanticipated impacts be carefully considered in further assessments of the sustainability of closed-containment systems and in ongoing efforts to develop and employ these technologies on a larger scale.