Marine shrimp aquaculture and natural resource degradation in Thailand

Abstract

/ Rising demand for shrimp in the developed nations has helped to foster a dramatic growth in marine shrimp aquaculture, particularly in South America and South Asia, In Thailand, marine shrimp aquaculture is now an important earner of foreign exchange. The growth in production has been achieved through the expansion of the culture area and the adoption of intensive production methods. The conversion of near-shore areas to shrimp culture, however, is proving to have many consequences that impinge on the environmental integrity of coastal areas. This paper reviews the development of Thailand's marine shrimp culture industry and examines the nature of the environmental impacts that are emerging. It then discusses the implications these have for rural poor and the long-term viability of the culture industry.

“Pink Gold Rush:” Shrimp Aquaculture, Sustainable Development, and the Environment in Northwestern Mexico

“…In Mexico, research on the current and potential environmental impact of the industry is starting to emerge, as many of the environmental problems already experienced by other Third World countries appear. Scholars working on the topic of shrimp aquaculture and the environment have highlighted the most common environmental Stonich 1991Stonich , 1995Stonich et al 1997;Bailey, 1988Bailey, , 1992Bailey, , 1998Weidner et al 1992;Phillips et al1993;Flaherty and Choomjet 1995), degradation of coastal wetlands and lagoons (DeWalt 1998;Weidner et al 1992), reduction in the stocks of wild shrimp (Weidner et al 1992;Pullin 1993), loss of terrestrial habitats (Phillips et al 1993;Meltzoff and LiPuma 1986), and water-quality deterioration (Vandergeest andFlaherty 1998, Boyd andClay 1998). In Latin America, research on the environmental impact of the shrimp aquaculture industry has focused on Ecuador and Honduras.…”

Current situation of freshwater aquaculture in the lower Amazon River and the potentiality of development

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Impact of Shrimp Farm Effluent on Water Quality in Coastal Areas of the World Heritage-Listed Ha Long Bay

“…However, the industry is receiving increasing criticisms as effluent discharged from shrimp farms can be a major source of pollution in estuarine and marine ecosystems (Dierberg and Kiattisimkul, 1996;Flaherty and Karnjanakesorn, 1995;Graslund et al, 2003;Paez-Osuna, 2001;PaezOsuna et al, 1998;Senarath and Visvanathan, 2001). Pollution from shrimp farms is in the form of waste feed, shrimp faeces and excreta that can lead to nutrient enrichment, eutrophication and increased suspended solids in receiving waters (Boyd and Green, 2002;Jackson et al, 2003;Senarath and Visvanathan, 2001).…”