Climate change implications for fisheries and aquaculture: overview of current scientific knowledge

221 Pages·2009·1.89 MB·English

by  Barange

IS
S
N
FAO 2
0
FISHERIES AND 7
0
AQUACULTURE -7
TECHNICAL 01
0
PAPER
530
Climate change implications
for fisheries and aquaculture
Overview of current scientific knowledge
Cover:
Illustration by Emanuela D’Antoni.
Climate change implications FAO
FISHERIES AND
AQUACULTURE
for fisheries and aquaculture
TECHNICAL
PAPER
530
Overview of current scientific knowledge
Edited by
Kevern Cochrane
Chief Fisheries Management and Conservation Service
Fisheries and Aquaculture Management Division
FAO Fisheries and Aquaculture Department
Rome, Italy
Cassandra De Young
Fishery Policy Analyst
Fisheries and Aquaculture Economics and Policy Division
FAO Fisheries and Aquaculture Department
Rome, Italy
Doris Soto
Senior Fisheries Resources Officer (Aquaculture)
Fisheries and Aquaculture Management Division
FAO Fisheries and Aquaculture Department
Rome, Italy
Tarûb Bahri
Fishery Resources Officer
Fisheries and Aquaculture Management Division
FAO Fisheries and Aquaculture Department
Rome, Italy

FOOD AND AGRICULTURE ORGANIZATION OF THE UNITED NATIONS
Rome, 2009
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iii
Preparation of this document
This document was prepared in response to the request from the twenty-seventh
session of the Committee on Fisheries (COFI) that the FAO Fisheries and Aquaculture
Department (FI) should undertake a scoping study to identify the key issues on
climate change and fisheries. It contains the three comprehensive technical papers that
formed the basis for the technical discussions during the Expert Workshop on Climate
Change Implications for Fisheries and Aquaculture held from 7 to 9 April 2008 at
FAO headquarters. The conclusions and recommendation of this Expert Workshop are
available in the 2008 FAO Fisheries Report No. 870.
The three papers in this document intend to provide an overview of the current
available knowledge on the possible impacts of climate change on fisheries and
aquaculture. The first addresses climate variability and change and their physical and
ecological consequences on marine and freshwater environments. The second tackles the
consequences of climate change impacts on fishers and their communities and reviews
possible adaptation and mitigation measures that could be implemented. Finally, the
third addresses specifically the impacts of climate change on aquaculture and reviews
possible adaptation and mitigation measures that could be implemented.
All participants in the Expert Workshop are gratefully acknowledged for providing
comments and helping to improve the three technical papers included in this
publication.
Funding for the organization of the Expert Workshop and the publication of this
Technical Paper was provided by the Governments of Italy and Norway through
activities related to the FAO High-Level Conference on World Food Security: the
Challenges of Climate Change and Bioenergy (Rome, 3–5 June 2008).
iv
Abstract
An overview of the current scientific knowledge available on climate change implications
for fisheries and aquaculture is provided through three technical papers that were
presented and discussed during the Expert Workshop on Climate Change Implications
for Fisheries and Aquaculture (Rome, 7–9 April 2008). A summary of the workshop
outcomes as well as key messages on impacts of climate change on aquatic ecosystems
and on fisheries- and aquaculture-based livelihoods are provided in the introduction of
this Technical Paper.
The first paper reviews the physical and ecological impacts of climate change
relevant to marine and inland capture fisheries and aquaculture. The paper begins with
a review of the physical impacts of climate change on marine and freshwater systems
and then connects these changes with observed effects on fish production processes.
It also outlines a series of scenarios of climate change impacts on fish production and
ecosystems through case studies in different regions and ecosystems.
The second paper tackles the consequences of climate change impacts on fisheries and
their dependent communities. It analyses the exposure, sensitivity and vulnerability of
fisheries to climate change and presents examples of adaptive mechanisms currently used
in the sector. The contribution of fisheries to greenhouse gas emissions is addressed and
examples of mitigation strategies are given. The role of public policy and institutions in
promoting climate change adaptation and mitigation is also explored.
Finally, the third paper addresses the impacts of climate change on aquaculture.
It provides an overview of the current food fish and aquaculture production and a
synthesis of existing studies on climate change effects on aquaculture and fisheries. The
paper focuses on the direct and indirect impacts of climate change on aquaculture, in
terms of biodiversity, fish disease and fishmeal. Contribution of aquaculture to climate
change is addressed (carbon emission and carbon sequestration), as well as possible
adaptation and mitigation measures that could be implemented.
Cochrane, K.; De Young, C.; Soto, D.; Bahri, T. (eds).
Climate change implications for fisheries and aquaculture: overview of current
scientific knowledge.
FAO Fisheries and Aquaculture Technical Paper. No. 530. Rome, FAO. 2009. 212p.
v
Contents
Preparation of this document iii
Abstract iv
Introduction 1
Physical and ecological impacts of climate change relevant to marine
and inland capture fisheries and aquaculture 7
(M. Barange and R.I. Perry)
Climate change and capture fisheries: potential impacts, adaptation
and mitigation 107
(T. Daw, W.N. Adger, K. Brown and M.-C. Badjeck)
Climate change and aquaculture: potential impacts, adaptation and
mitigation 151
(S.S. De Silva and D. Soto)

1
Introduction
GENERAL BACKGROUND ON CLIMATE CHANGE
The threats of climate change to human society and natural ecosystems have been
elevated to a top priority since the release of the fourth Assessment Report of the
Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) in 2007. While the importance of
fisheries and aquaculture is often understated, the implications of climate change for
these sectors and for coastal and riparian communities in general are difficult to ignore.
At the same time, fisheries and aquaculture do contribute to greenhouse gas emissions,
although in a relatively minor way, and present some opportunities for mitigation
efforts.
From local to global levels, fisheries and aquaculture play important roles for food
supply, food security and income generation. Some 43.5 million people work directly
in the sector, with the great majority in developing countries. Adding those who work
in associated processing, marketing, distribution and supply industries, the sector
supports nearly 200 million livelihoods. Aquatic foods have high nutritional quality,
contributing 20 percent or more of average per capita animal protein intake for more
than 1.5 billion people, mostly from developing countries. They are also the most
widely traded foodstuffs and are essential components of export earnings for many
poorer countries. The sector has particular significance for small island States, who
depend on fisheries and aquaculture for at least 50% of their animal protein.
Climate change is projected to impact broadly across ecosystems, societies and
economies, increasing pressure on all livelihoods and food supplies, including those in
the fisheries and aquaculture sector. Food quality will have a more pivotal role as food
resources come under greater pressure and the availability and access to fish supplies
will become an increasingly critical development issue.
The fisheries sector differs from mainstream agriculture and has distinct interactions
and needs with respect to climate change. Capture fisheries has unique features of
natural resource harvesting linked with global ecosystem processes. Aquaculture
complements and increasingly adds to supply and, though more similar to agriculture
in its interactions, has important links with capture fisheries.
The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), in
recognizing the likely changes to come and the interactions between fisheries and
aquaculture, agriculture and forestry and these changes, held a High-Level Conference
on World Food Security: the Challenges of Climate Change and Bioenergy at FAO
headquarters in Rome from 3 to 5 June 2008. This conference addressed food security
and poverty reduction issues in the face of climate change and energy security.
The FAO Fisheries and Aquaculture Department (FI) held an Expert Workshop on
Climate Change Implications for Fisheries and Aquaculture, from 7 to 9 April 20081, in
order to provide the FAO Conference with a coherent and high quality understanding
of the fisheries and aquaculture climate change issues. This Workshop provided inputs
into the High-Level Conference and also constitutes a response to the request from
the twenty-seventh session of the FAO Committee on Fisheries (COFI) that “FAO
should undertake a scoping study to identify the key issues on climate change and
fisheries, initiate a discussion on how the fishing industry can adapt to climate change,
1 FAO. 2008. Report of the FAO Expert Workshop on Climate Change Implications for Fisheries and
Aquaculture. Rome, Italy, 7–9 April 2008. FAO Fisheries Report. No. 870. Rome, FAO. 2008. 32p.
2 Climate change implications for fisheries and aquaculture – Overview of current scientific knowledge
and for FAO to take a lead in informing fishers and policy-makers about the likely
consequences of climate change for fisheries”.
CONCLUSIONS OF THE FAO EXPERT WORKSHOP ON CLIMATE CHANGE
IMPLICATIONS FOR FISHERIES AND AQUACULTURE (ROME, 7–9 APRIL 2008)
This Expert Workshop was convened to identify and review the key issues of climate
change in relation to fisheries and aquaculture, from the physical changes, the impacts
of those changes on aquatic resources and ecosystems and how these ecological
impacts translate into human dimensions of coping and adapting within fisheries and
aquaculture. Three comprehensive background documents were developed to help to
inform the technical discussions and are included in the present publication:
–
Physical and ecological impacts of climate change relevant to marine and inland
capture fisheries and aquaculture by Manuel Barange and Ian Perry;
–
Climate change and capture fisheries: potential impacts, adaptation and mitigation
by Tim Daw, Neil Adger, Katrina Brown and Marie-Caroline Badjeck;
–
Climate change and aquaculture: potential impacts, adaptation and mitigation
by Sena De Silva and Doris Soto.
One of the key messages that came out of the discussions after analysing the
three documents is that climate change is a compounding threat to the sustainability
of capture fisheries and aquaculture development. Impacts occur as a result of
both gradual warming and associated physical changes as well as from frequency,
intensity and location of extreme events, and take place in the context of other global
socio-economic pressures on natural resources. An outline of the main impacts on
ecosystems and livelihoods and their implications for food security was produced by
the workshop. Urgent adaptation measures are required in response to opportunities
and threats to food and livelihood provision due to climatic variations.
Ecosystem impacts
The workshop concluded that in terms of physical and biological impacts, climate
change is modifying the distribution of marine and freshwater species. In general,
warm-water species are being displaced towards the poles and are experiencing
changes in the size and productivity of their habitats. In a warmed world, ecosystem
productivity is likely to be reduced in most tropical and subtropical oceans, seas
and lakes and increased in high latitudes. Increased temperatures will also affect fish
physiological processes; resulting in both positive and negative effects on fisheries and
aquaculture systems depending on the region and latitude.
Climate change is already affecting the seasonality of particular biological processes,
altering marine and freshwater food webs, with unpredictable consequences for fish
production. Increased risks of species invasions and spreading of vector-borne diseases
provide additional concerns.
Differential warming between land and oceans and between polar and tropical
regions will affect the intensity, frequency and seasonality of climate patterns (e.g. El
Niño) and extreme weather events (e.g. floods, droughts and storms). These events will
impact the stability of related marine and freshwater resources.
Sea level rise, glacier melting, ocean acidification and changes in precipitation,
groundwater and river flows will significantly affect coral reefs, wetlands, rivers, lakes
and estuaries; requiring adaptive measures to exploit opportunities and minimise
impacts on fisheries and aquaculture systems.
Impacts on livelihoods
The workshop noted that changes in distribution, species composition and habitats
will require changes in fishing practices and aquaculture operations, as well as in the
location of landing, farming and processing facilities.