Basic Knowledge in Agriculture #41

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Discuss on Aquaculture.

Aquaculture, also referred to as fish farming, is the manipulated of controlled growth of aquatic organisms which includes fish, crustaceans, another mollusk, and plants that grow in water. It can be practiced in freshwater, brackish water or marine areas with either ponds, tanks, cages or raceways. Aquaculture is essential to satisfy world demand of sea food, lowers pressure on wild fish and helps ensure food security.

It generates jobs and acts as a tool to the development of the economy. Nonetheless, to be successful in aquaculture, there must be management of the quality of water, feeding, disease, and breeding strategies ensuring sustainability. Owning the latest technology and the use of environmental friendly processes, aquaculture has the potential to ensure high quality protein based on the need to conserve natural resources hence, being a key sector in the future production of foods and economic growth globally.

Discuss on the types of Aquaculture.

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Aquaculture (the culture of organisms in water) has a number of significant subtypes depending on the environment and the species grown. So mariculture refers to the rearing of marine organisms, such as fish, shellfish and seaweeds in the sea (ocean or coast). Freshwater aquaculture is concerned with catfish, tilapia and carp in tanks, rivers or ponds. Integrated multi-trophic aquaculture is an approach to fish, mollusks and algae where waste products of one can be used by the other, hence pollution is minimized.

To reduce its negative effect on the environment, a recirculating aquaculture system (RAS) employs the use of controlled tanks characterized by water filtration. Open-cage culture/pen culture involves farming of fish in the natural water bodies but the fish is subject to the risk in the environment. All these varieties help in ensuring food security, revenue, and sustainability of the environment when used as part of a responsible management.

Talk about the challenges encountered in.
Aquaculture and the solutions to those problems.

The issue of aquaculture has some challenges, which impact on productivity and sustainability. Pollution of water is possible by an excess of feed and wastes which can be harmful to the farmed species as well as the ecosystem. There is rapid spread of diseases when they occur in a population where the population density is large resulting in huge losses. Dependency on expensive feed and also the reliance on wild fishmeal drivers puts pressure on finances and natural resources. The impact of environmental factors including destruction of habitats and release of the invasive species endangers biodiversity.

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Some of the solutions include implementing integrated multi-trophic systems to recycle nutrients so that the nutrients can be reused, using recirculating aquaculture system (RAS) to regulate water quality and developing alternative or plant-based feeds so as to lower the costs. Sanitary control and vaccination prevent the appearance of diseases, and effective laws and environmental friendliness regulate the environment. The enhancement of efficiency by education and technology makes aquaculture reliable as a source of food.

Thanks for reading my post I'm inviting @josepha @bela90 and @ninapenda to participate.