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‘Effective management of aquaculture waste needed’

KOCHI: Effective management of waste from aquaculture was required for achieving ecological and environmental sustainability in the sector, said Ramachandran Thekkedath, Vice-Chancellor of the Cochin University of Science and Technology.

He was speaking after inaugurating the Indo-European workshop on managing fish waste here recently.

Fisheries and aquaculture have a significant role in food production and providing employment opportunities, he said.

Low-cost technologies for treating waste from the aquaculture farms and reuse of water were the present day requirements of the aquaculture sector, said Vincenzo Zonno of the University Del Salento, Italy, in his keynote address.

The release of untreated effluents from fish farms into water bodies would affect the water quality. The contamination of groundwater, as a result of land-based fish farming activity, is also an area of concern, he said.

The aqua culture sector was operating on low margins and it was not possible to introduce expensive technologies in the sector.

Optimisation of use of water is essential, as water has become a scarce commodity. Waste generation from the aqua farms should be reduced.

At the same time, waste should be considered as a resource for generation of revenue.

The reuse of waste and byproducts will bring in sufficient revenue to cover the operational and management costs, he suggested.

In his presidential address, B. Madhusoodana Kurup, director, School of Industrial Fisheries of the Cochin University of Science and Technology, said that the consumer demand for food produced from environment-friendly production systems was increasing.

Aquaculture may generate considerable amount of effluents which can have unacceptable impact on environment, he said.

The workshop was organised as part of the European Union Sixth Framework Programme project on environmental management reform for sustainable farming, fisheries and aquaculture. It was hosted by the School and the National Institute of Oceanography, Goa.

C.T. Samuel, former director of the School, Anwar Hashim, president, Seafood Exporters Association of India, Mohanachandran, member, syndicate, Cochin University of Science and Technology, A.B. Ponniah, director, Central Institute for Brackishwater Aquaculture, Chennai, and Kesavan Nair, Managing director, Matsyafed, spoke at the workshop.

A. Ramachandran, professor, School of Industrial Fisheries, welcomed the gathering and M. Harikrishnan, convener of the conference, proposed a vote of thanks.

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