MEDRAP II
RAB/89/005-RER/87/009

FIELD DOCUMENT

92/11

SEMINAR ON AQUACULTURE AND ENVIRONMENT IN THE MEDITERRANEAN
Bordeaux, March 25–27 1992

Edited by MEDRAP II Regional Center
Tunis-Tunisia

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Preparation of this document

This document is one of a series of documents prepared during the course of the Project identified in the title page. The conclusions and recommendations given were considered appropriate at the time it was prepared. The may be modified in the light of further knowledge gained at subsequent stages of the Project.

The designations employed and the presentation of the material in this document do not imply the expression of any opinion whatsoever on the part of the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United nations concerning the legal status of any country, territory, city or area or of its authorities, or concerning the delimitation of its frontiers or boundaries.

The opinions expressed by the Authors in this document are not necessarily those of FAO or the Governments of the participating countries.

Abstract

A seminar on Aquaculture and Environment was held on March 25–27, 1992 in Bordeaux-France. The report was edited by IFREMER with the papers presented by the invited experts. two aspects were considered in the meeting:

the various risks and conflicts between aquaculture activities and the environment;
preventive legal actions to favour the implementation of aquaculture activities in a safe site.

The coastal zones, legoons and estuaries in particular, because of their interface position, are subject to aggressions from various productive operations. General economic development accompanied with urbanisation and consequent growth of coastal population in touristic and residential areas, heavy industries like shipyards, petrol refineries, thermoelectric power plants can produce environmental implication and come in conflict with potential uses of marine environment.

It was deemed necessary to consider the socio-economic parameters in solving the mentioned problems. It was recommended to identify the adapted descriptors in each activity, to develop a methodology for the study of the biological, physical and socio-economic aspects, to establish a methodology of monitoring and control.

The aquaculture activities, due to its environmental effects, seemed to be a concern of international law. Because aquaculture is changing the naturel ecology of the seas and inland waters, it should be regulated by domestic laws.

Some international laws were established concerning environmental protection for the prevention of sea-based pollution (oil pollution, Barcelona Convention) and for the Prevention of land-based pollution (Athens Protocol).

It was recommended a cooperation at a larger scale in the field. The constitution of a Network on the subject will be the basic tool for the implemention of a permanent cooperation between the countries of the region.

Acknowledgements

The Editor would like to thank IFREMER, namely Mr. FERLIN, the National coordinator, for their support to the organisation of this activity.

Thanks are also to the participants from the Member/Associated countries, and the experts from the various international institutions who accepted to contribute to the seminar.

Note from the reviser

The revision and publication of this document could only be done a long time after the the closure of the project. This had led to some difficulties in finalising the document and implementing corrections, because authors and contributors as well as some of the original material of files were no longer available.

Therefore contributions from participants and session papers annexed to most of the documents were left in their original form. No. language corrections were introduced, the content was not modified and left under their respective author' responsibility.

Considering the above, we hope that the reader will understand that a standard of publication could not be maintained on a level as high as we would have like it to be.

United Nations Development Programme

Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations

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