The impact of aquaculture in rural management

The objectives of aquacultural development in continental waters vary according to the area. In developing countries, inland aquaculture is often integrated with other agricultural activities. The main objective is to produce inexpensive animal protein for local consumption and products for export to generate foreign currency. In addition, aquaculture may use areas unsuitable for agriculture. The tendency is to keep the cost of production low by the use of various wastes as food or fertilizers and integrate the cultivation programs into large projects of irrigation, dam construction, drainage of wet lands, etc. Various scenarios can be found: monoculture (fish, crustaceans), polyculture (various associations of aquatic animals), association of fish culture with vegetable production (including culture in irrigation reservoirs) and with animal production (pig, chicken, duck, etc.). In developed countries one of the main goals assigned to inland aquaculture is to maintain some activities in poor areas or in zones abandoned by agriculture. Numerous scenarios can now be identified but the economic viability has not always been fully evaluated. These scenarios usually produce high quality products including fish for recreational activities (ornamental fish or fish for anglers). Some inland aquacultural activities have also a role in the protection of the environment by recycling wastes (production of fish in manured ponds, production of zooplankton using pig manure). The originality of aquaculture in the context of rural management is variable according to the ype of production and can be assessed by its degree of integration with other rural activities. A large trout farm can be compared to any other small industry or out of soil production; it only provides some local employment, it does not rely on local food resources and may pollute the environment. The catfish industry in the USA, established on land not fully used anymore by agriculture and utilizing cereals and soybean locally produced to feed the fish shows a higher degree of integration and a greater impact in rural management. Similarly small rearing units of trout or salmon (e.g. in Norway) run by small-scale farmers contribute to maintain some activities in remote areas. In developing countries the high degree of integration wich is the tradition in the case of aquaculture producing protein for local consumption tends to be lost when the operation is newly established and the production exported.