This study was conducted to better understand the impact of marine fish farming by estimating mass balances of carbon and nitrogen. According to the results, 94.55% of carbon and 95.66% of nitrogen inputs were from the feed supplied in the farm. Of th...
This study was conducted to better understand the impact of marine fish farming by estimating mass balances of carbon and nitrogen. According to the results, 94.55% of carbon and 95.66% of nitrogen inputs were from the feed supplied in the farm. Of the total carbon emissions in the farm, 47.28% was due to fish respiration, which was subsequently released into seawater. Advection and diffusion in the farm contributed to 30.29% of the carbon released.
In the case of nitrogen, 50.70% of the nitrogen released into the seawater was produced by fish excreta, and 31.37% was advected and diffused into the system. The sedimentary environment received 3.82% and 3.10% of the carbon and nitrogen released from the farm, respectively. The fish feed used for healthy growth contained 11.64% carbon and 9.17% nitrogen. Since the feed type was floating pellets, the load released into the sedimentary environment was relatively lower than that released into the marine environment. These findings suggest that the identification of an optimal fish feed that respects fish physiology and preserves a healthy ecology is critical for the future of aquaculture.
Furthermore, ecosystem-based aquaculture systems that decrease environmental burden, while endeavoring to improve environmental health, are required.