Conclusions and recommendations

The workshop enabled a better understating and streamlining of the process and steps for aquaculture zoning, site selection and area management. It highlighted lessons learned from case studies and identified gaps for improvements.

The ecosystem approach to aquaculture provides an opportunity for countries to develop aquaculture in a responsible and sustainable manner. EAA should have a central position in the planning and management of aquaculture development in any country. Through a participatory process, EAA should facilitate the appropriate balance between the socioeconomic, environmental and governance objectives and the associated measures.
The country case studies provided examples of the broad range of situations in which spatial planning has been fully implemented and where spatial planning for aquaculture is only just beginning. It was very clear on the other hand that Aquaculture Area Management is either absent or poorly implemented although it is extremely needed to address fish health issues and biosecurity, environmental issues and socioeconomic issues. It was agreed that AMAs could provide a way forward to sustainably intensify aquaculture, particularly in Asia.

While countries are advancing with their spatial plans, some of the major gaps appear to be: (i) limited or total absence of coordinated environmental monitoring at the relevant ecosystem scale; (ii) insufficient capacity to implement regulations; (iii) no methodologies for or limited estimates of carrying capacity; and (iv) lack of assessment of risks to aquaculture posed by climatic variability, climate change and other external threats such as industrial pollution of water sources.