Essay : The effect of salmon farming on wild salmon populations

Wijers, T (2013) Essay : The effect of salmon farming on wild salmon populations. Master's Thesis / Essay, Biology.

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Abstract

Salmon are farmed in great numbers due to the relative ease of culturing and high market demands. Mainly the Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar) is being cultured and mostly in Norway. One might think that salmon culture relieves wild salmon populations, but the opposite seems true. Salmon farming pressures wild salmon populations even further, both directly and indirectly. In this review I explore the effect of salmon farming on wild salmon populations. Some factors that negatively affect wild salmon populations are; fish feed and pollution created by high stock densities, escaped salmon that dilute the gene pool of wild salmon populations, diseases and parasites such as sea lice that spread from salmon farms to wild salmon and the fact that the high amount of cultured salmon lower the price for all salmon, threatening wild salmon stocks economically. Effort is being done to minimize these negative effects. For example partial replacement of fish based oil and proteins with plant based products, better and stronger cages reducing the chance of escapes, better understanding of sea lice and other diseases but also new techniques such as the use of cleaner fish to reduce the risk of spreading and lastly marketing wild salmon differently to get a better price for wild salmon. Even though steps are being taken in the right direction to increase sustainability and reduce the impact of salmon farming on wild salmon populations, the future of wild salmon remains uncertain.

Item Type:	Thesis (Master's Thesis / Essay)
Degree programme:	Biology
Thesis type:	Master's Thesis / Essay
Language:	English
Date Deposited:	15 Feb 2018 07:52
Last Modified:	15 Feb 2018 07:52
URI:	https://fse.studenttheses.ub.rug.nl/id/eprint/10954

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