Could underwater farms help fight climate change? - Ayana Johnson and Megan Davis
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0:07 - 0:09For 3 billion people around the world,
-
0:09 - 0:12seafood provides a significant source
of protein and nutrition. -
0:12 - 0:17But recent studies show that 33% of wild
fisheries are overfished, -
0:17 - 0:21while another 60% are fished at their
maximum capacity. -
0:21 - 0:23In fact, over half the seafood we eat–
-
0:23 - 0:26from finfish and shellfish to
seaweed and algae– -
0:26 - 0:28isn’t caught in the wild.
-
0:28 - 0:31It’s grown through aquaculture,
or aquatic farming. -
0:31 - 0:34Farmed seafood is one of the
fastest-growing food industries, -
0:34 - 0:38expanding in volume by 5.8% each year.
-
0:38 - 0:42But different methods of aquaculture come
with different advantages and issues– -
0:42 - 0:47some of which echo the serious problems
we’ve seen in industrial agriculture. -
0:47 - 0:51So how can we avoid repeating the mistakes
we’ve made on land, at sea? -
0:51 - 0:54What aquaculture approaches are we
currently using, -
0:54 - 0:58and what does a sustainable way
to farm the ocean really look like? -
0:58 - 1:03One of the most common aquaculture
methods involves large pens made of nets, -
1:03 - 1:08where fish are farmed offshore in floating
cages roughly 1000 square meters in size. -
1:08 - 1:12Commonly employed off the coast of Chile
and in the fjords of Norway, -
1:12 - 1:14these fish, like many industrially
farmed animals, -
1:14 - 1:17occupy stressful, overcrowded pens.
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1:17 - 1:19They produce massive amounts of waste,
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1:19 - 1:20polluting the surrounding areas
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1:20 - 1:24and potentially spreading diseases
to wild species. -
1:24 - 1:27Worse still, since the antibiotics
employed to fight disease -
1:27 - 1:29aren’t fully absorbed by the fish,
-
1:29 - 1:32they get excreted back
into the environment. -
1:32 - 1:36Net pens are also susceptible to escapes,
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1:36 - 1:39unleashing huge numbers of fish which
compete for resources -
1:39 - 1:43and weaken the local gene pool
with genes adapted for captivity. -
1:43 - 1:48Escaped fish can even disrupt local
ecosystems as invasive species. -
1:48 - 1:49Other techniques,
-
1:49 - 1:54such as man-made coastal ponds commonly
used for shrimp farming in Southeast Asia, -
1:54 - 1:57create additional environmental problems.
-
1:57 - 2:01Just like net pens, these ponds are prone
to spreading pollution and disease. -
2:01 - 2:05Their construction also frequently
destroys important ecosystems -
2:05 - 2:07like mangroves and marshes,
-
2:07 - 2:09which protect coastal areas from storms,
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2:09 - 2:13provide habitats, and absorb tons
of greenhouse gases. -
2:13 - 2:16One way to solve these problems is to farm
fish on land -
2:16 - 2:19in completely contained systems.
-
2:19 - 2:24Tanks and raceways can recirculate and
filter water to prevent pollution. -
2:24 - 2:28But even fully contained facilities still
contend with another major hurdle: -
2:28 - 2:29fishmeal.
-
2:29 - 2:33About 10% of the seafood caught globally
is used to feed animals, -
2:33 - 2:35including carnivorous farmed fish.
-
2:35 - 2:40Researchers are working on fish feed made
of insects and plant-based proteins, -
2:40 - 2:45but for now many inland fish farms
are connected to overfishing. -
2:45 - 2:49All these obstacles can make sustainable
aquaculture feel a long way off, -
2:49 - 2:54but innovative farmers are finding new
ways to responsibly farm the seas. -
2:54 - 2:58The most promising solution of all
may be to look lower on the food chain. -
2:58 - 3:02Instead of cramming large, carnivorous
fish into pens, -
3:02 - 3:04we can work with natural ocean systems
-
3:04 - 3:08to produce huge amounts of shellfish
and seaweeds. -
3:08 - 3:12These low-maintenance flora and fauna
don’t need to be fed at all. -
3:12 - 3:15In fact, they naturally improve
water quality, -
3:15 - 3:20filtering it as they feed off of sunlight
and nutrients in the seawater. -
3:20 - 3:22By absorbing carbon through
photosynthesis, -
3:22 - 3:24these farms help battle climate change,
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3:24 - 3:27and reduce local ocean acidification
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3:27 - 3:30while creating habitats for other
species to thrive. -
3:30 - 3:33Shifting to restorative ocean farming
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3:33 - 3:36could provide good jobs for
coastal communities, -
3:36 - 3:39and support healthy plant and
shellfish-based diets -
3:39 - 3:41that have an incredibly
low carbon footprint. -
3:41 - 3:43In just 5 months,
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3:43 - 3:484,000 square meters of ocean can
produce 25 tons of seaweed -
3:48 - 3:51and 250,000 of shellfish.
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3:51 - 3:53With the right distribution network,
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3:53 - 3:56a series of small farms, collectively
the size of Washington State -
3:56 - 3:58could feed the planet.
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3:58 - 4:01Farms like these are already popping up
around the globe, -
4:01 - 4:04and a new generation of farmers is
stepping up -
4:04 - 4:07to pursue a more sustainable future.
-
4:07 - 4:08Done properly,
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4:08 - 4:12regenerative ocean farming could play
a vital role in helping our oceans, -
4:12 - 4:15our climate, and ourselves.
- Title:
- Could underwater farms help fight climate change? - Ayana Johnson and Megan Davis
- Speaker:
- Ayana Johnson and Megan Davis
- Description:
-
View full lesson: https://ed.ted.com/lessons/could-underwater-farms-help-fight-climate-change-ayana-johnson-and-megan-davis
For billions of people, seafood provides a significant source of protein and nutrition, but over half the seafood we eat isn't caught in the wild, it's grown through aquaculture. Farmed seafood is one of the fastest-growing food industries, but the farming methods echo the problems we've seen in industrial agriculture. Is there a way to sustainably farm the ocean? Ayana Johnson and Megan Davis investigate.
Lesson by Ayana Johnson and Megan Davis, directed by Biljana Labovic.
- Video Language:
- English
- Team:
- closed TED
- Project:
- TED-Ed
- Duration:
- 04:15
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Tara Ahmadinejad edited English subtitles for Underwater farms vs. climate change |