Almost 50% of all seafood eaten worldwide today is farmed, compared to only 9% in
1980, primarily from the expansion of aquaculture in China and India. Increasing seafood
production in an environmentally and socially responsible way will likely require the use of
policy tools, such as good management practices (GMPs) and performance standards. These
policy tools are commonly utilized to reduce effects associated with the use of natural
resources in commercial activities like mariculture. Although mariculture operations may
expand the production of seafood without additional exploitation of wild populations, they
still depend upon and affect natural ecosystems and ecosystem services. GMPs and
performance standards are useful for protecting the environment while increasing mariculture
production
