MACAROMOD: A tool to model particulate waste dispersion and benthic impact from offshore sea-cage aquaculture in the Macaronesian region
| Autor: | Rodrigo Riera, Chris J Cromey, Eva Ramos, Fernando Tuya, Omar Álvarez, Julián Pérez-Villacastín Domínguez, Óscar Cano Pérez, Óscar Monterroso, Myriam Rodríguez |
|---|---|
| Rok vydání: | 2017 |
| Předmět: |
0106 biological sciences
biology business.industry 010604 marine biology & hydrobiology Ecological Modeling Pellets 04 agricultural and veterinary sciences Argyrosomus regius Particulates biology.organism_classification 01 natural sciences Fishery Aquaculture Benthos Benthic zone 040102 fisheries 0401 agriculture forestry and fisheries Environmental science Dicentrarchus Submarine pipeline business |
| Zdroj: | Ecological Modelling. 361:122-134 |
| ISSN: | 0304-3800 |
| DOI: | 10.1016/j.ecolmodel.2017.08.006 |
| Popis: | Uneaten feeding pellets and fish released faeces cause the most severe impact on the benthos beneath aquaculture offshore sea-cages. A modelling tool, ‘MACAROMOD', composed of particulate waste dispersion and benthic response, was developed to predict the environmental disturbances of offshore sea-bream ( Sparus aurata ), sea-bass ( Dicentrarchus labrax ) and meagre ( Argyrosomus regius ) aquaculture in the Macaronesian region (oceanic archipelagos in the north-eastern Atlantic). MACAROMOD was tested at 8 sites (7 farms in the Canary Islands and 1 farm in Madeira), hence covering a high variability in oceanographic and environmental conditions. In general, a low percentage of lost pellets was found (3%), while a high rate of pellets were consumed by wild fishes (97%). Considering all studied sites, significant correlations were shown between observed and predicted solid fluxes (R 2 = 0.89), and also between solid fluxes and the depositional footprint on the benthos, by taken advantage of observed and predicted values of the ecological status AMBI index (R 2 = 0.6966). A flux threshold of 12 kg solids m −2 yr −1 was predicted as a boundary from which ecological degradation occurs for the study region. MACAROMOD is therefore a valid tool to improve planning and monitoring Macaronesian aquaculture. |
| Databáze: | OpenAIRE |
| Externí odkaz: |
|
Full Text from ScienceDirect