Assessing the risk of climate change to aquaculture: a national-scale case study for the Sultanate of Oman

Aquaculture is expanding globally and is an increasingly important component of world food security. However, climate change can impact aquaculture through a variety of mechanisms varying by location and aquaculture type with implications for future productivity. Understanding the risks that climate change poses on different culture systems in different locations is important to enable the design of targeted adaptation and resilience building actions. Here we present an aquaculture climate risk assessment framework, applied to the aquaculture sector of the Sultanate of Oman, that identifies the sensitivity and exposure of different components of the sector to climate change risk. Oman has aspirations to significantly expand aquaculture over the next decade focussing on coastal shrimp ponds, finfish sea cages, land-based recirculating aquaculture systems, and ponds and raceways. We quantify overall climate risk as the combination of four risks: (1) species’ temperature sensitivity, (2) flooding and storm surge exposure, (3) low-oxygen hazard and (4) disease vulnerability. Shrimp culture is identified as highest risk due to high exposure of shrimp ponds to flooding and storm surges, and high disease vulnerability. Seabream cage farming also faces high risk due to high thermal sensitivity and high potential of low-oxygen levels affecting sea cages. Following the risk assessment a stakeholder workshop was conducted to identify targeted adaptation measures for the different components of the sector. The framework for assessing climate risk to aquaculture demonstrated here is equally applicable at the regional, national or sub-national scale to support design of targeted resilience building actions and enhance food security

Establishing a marine monitoring programme to assess antibiotic resistance: a case study from the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) region

The World Health Organization considers antimicrobial resistance as one of the most pressing global issues which poses a fundamental threat to human health, development, and security. Due to demographic and environmental factors, the marine environment of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) region may be particularly susceptible to the threat of antimicrobial resistance. However, there is currently little information on the presence of AMR in the GCC marine environment to inform the design of appropriate targeted surveillance activities. The objective of this study was to develop, implement and conduct a rapid regional baseline monitoring survey of the presence of AMR in the GCC marine environment, through the analysis of seawater collected from high-risk areas across four GCC states: (Bahrain, Oman, Kuwait, and the United Arab Emirates). 560 Escherichia coli strains were analysed as part of this monitoring programme between December 2018 and May 2019. Multi-drug resistance (resistance to three or more structural classes of antimicrobials) was observed in 32.5% of tested isolates. High levels of reduced susceptibility to ampicillin (29.6%), nalidixic acid (27.9%), tetracycline (27.5%), sulfamethoxazole (22.5%) and trimethoprim (22.5%) were observed. Reduced susceptibility to the high priority critically important antimicrobials: azithromycin (9.3%), ceftazidime (12.7%), cefotaxime (12.7%), ciprofloxacin (44.6%), gentamicin (2.7%) and tigecycline (0.5%), was also noted. A subset of 173 isolates was whole genome sequenced, and high carriage rates of qnrS1 (60/173) and bla CTX-M-15 (45/173) were observed, correlating with reduced susceptibility to the fluoroquinolones and third generation cephalosporins, respectively. This study is important because of the resistance patterns observed, the demonstrated utility in applying genomic-based approaches to routine microbiological monitoring, and the overall establishment of a transnational AMR surveillance framework focussed on coastal and marine environments

Principles to enable comprehensive national marine ecosystem status assessments from disparate data: The state of the marine environment in Kuwait

This paper presents an approach for preparing a comprehensive national marine ecosystem assessment and its application to the marine and coastal areas of the State of Kuwait. The approach is based on a set of principles to enable diverse data sources, of differing data quality and salience, to be combined into a single coordinated national assessment of marine ecosystem status to support the implementation of ecosystem-based management. The approach enables state assessments for multiple components of the marine ecosystem to be undertaken in a coordinated manner, using differing methods varying from quantitative to qualitative assessments depending on data and indicator availability. The marine ecosystem assessment is structured according to 6 major themes: i) Biodiversity, ii) Commercial Fisheries, iii) Food and Water Quality for Human Health, iv) Environmental Pollution, v) Eutrophication and Harmful Algal Blooms, and vi) Coastal Process and Oceanography. Comprehensive ecosystem assessments are an essential part of implementing the ecosystem approach, however detailed data directly related to clear, specified numerical management targets covering all aspects of a marine ecosystem are rarely available. The development of a State of the Marine Environment Report (SOMER) for Kuwait demonstrate that a coordinated comprehensive ecosystem assessment can be conducted using disparate data, and in relation to partially specified regulatory management objectives. The Kuwait SOMER highlighted the issues of coastal pollution, particularly sewage for human health and the environment. It shows that the rapid urbanization of Kuwait has led to significant changes in the ecology, with clear impacts on coral reef health, the availability of nesting locations for turtles and habitats for migratory birds. Long-term changes in nutrient input, via waste water and modified freshwater inputs is resulting in demonstrable impacts on a range of marine species and habitats within Kuwait marine waters. It also supports the move towards a regional approach required due to transboundary properties of many of the ecosystem components, drivers and pressures

Relative mobility determines the efficacy of MPAs in a two species mixed fishery with conflicting management objectives

Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) have been used to protect species in need of conservation and as a fisheries management tool. It has been suggested MPAs can benefit mobile stocks by protecting spawning grounds whilst also allowing yields to be maintained as mature fish move out of the protected areas. However, the robustness of this claim in mixed species fisheries has yet to be established. We use a simulation model to explore the efficacy of spatial closures and effort regulation when other forms of fishery control (e.g., Total Allowable Catches) are absent or non-enforced as ways of addressing management objectives that are difficult to reconcile due to the contrasting life-histories of a target and a bycatch, conservation species in a two-species fishery. The mobility of each stock in such a fishery affects the benefits conferred by an MPA. The differing management objectives of the two species can be partially met by effort regulations or closures when the species exhibit similar mobility. However, a more mobile conservation species prevents both sets of aims being met by either management tool. We use simulations to explore how spatial closures and effort regulation can be used to seek compromise between stakeholders when the mobility of one stock prevents conflicting management objectives to be fully met. Our results demonstrate that stock mobility is a key factor in considering whether an MPA can meet conflicting aims in a multispecies fishery compromised of stocks with differing life histories and mobilities

The marine environment of Kuwait—emerging issues in a rapidly changing environment

Kuwait's distinctive marine environment comprises a diverse range of habitats from sandy beaches and coral reefs to intertidal mudflats and marshes (Al-Abdulghani et al., 2013). These varied habitats are home to an equally diverse range of species including the rare smoothtooth blacktip shark, Carcharhinus leiodon ( Moore et al., 2014), and the endangered green, Chelonia mydas and hawksbill, Eretmochelys imbricata turtles ( Al-Mohanna et al., 2014 and Pilcher et al., 2014). Kuwaiti waters contain some of the most northerly coral reef systems in the world and the extensive intertidal habitats are important feedings grounds to resident and migratory birds, with the shallow waters in the north, fed by the Shatt Al-Arab estuary system, being some of the most productive waters in the Gulf ( Al-Ghadban et al., 2002, Al-Ghadban and El-Sammak, 2005 and Al-Rifaie et al., 2007).\ud \ud This diverse and productive environment fulfils a number of roles that benefits Kuwaiti society. In addition to supporting the conservation of regionally and globally important biodiversity, Kuwait's marine environment supports productive finfish and shellfish fisheries for human consumption and the culturally significant pearl oyster, Pinctada radiate ( Al-Zaidan et al., 2013 and Al-Husaini et al., 2015). The coastline and offshore areas have important recreational and amenity value, and waters of the Gulf are the main source of drinking water in Kuwait

Fisheries Centre research reports, Vol. 15, no. 6

Director's Foreward (Daniel Pauly). Preface. Trophic model of the northern Adriatic Sea, an eutrophic and highly exploited ecosystem (A. Barausse, A. Duci, C. Mazzoldi, Y. Artioli and L. Palmeri). Updated ecosystem model for the northern Benguela ecosystem, Namibia (S.J.J. Heymans and U.R. Sumaila). Modelling the food web in the upwelling ecosystem off central Chile (33°S–39°S) in the year 2000 (S. Neira and H. Arancibia). Spatial resources and fishery management framework in the East China Sea (H.Q. Cheng, H. Jiang, H.G. Xu, J. Wu, H. Ding, W. Le Quesne and F. Arreguín-Sánchez). An ecosystem simulation model of the northern Gulf of California (D. Lercari, F. Arreguín-Sánchez and W. Le Quesne). Marine ecosystem analyses in the Gulf of Ulloa, Mexico: BAC meets Ecopath (P. del Monte-Luna,F. Arreguín-Sánchez and D. Lluch-Belda). Trophic model of the ecosystem of La Paz Bay, southern Baja California Peninsula, Mexico (F. Arreguín-Sánchez, P. del Monte-Luna, J.G. Díaz-Uribe, M. Gorostieta, E.A. Chávez and R.Ronzón-Rodríguez). Spatial modelling of the Senegambian ecosystem (B. Samb). A benthic ecosystem model of the Sinaloa continental shelf, Mexico (L.A. Salcido-Guevara and F. Arreguín-Sánchez).Fisheries Centre (FC)UnreviewedFacultyResearcherGraduat

Fisheries Centre research reports, Vol. 16, no. 2

Director's Foreward. Executive Summary. 1. Introduction. 2. Methods. 3. Results. 4. Discussion. Acknowledgements. References.Fisheries Centre (FC)UnreviewedFacultyResearcherGraduat