Pisciculture marine intensive et environnement

Farmed sea fish production is at the moment relatively undeveloped in France (20 million alevins, 2,600 tonnes of fish, 165 million francs), but it has growth potential that is yet to be exploited. Installation plans are eliciting a great variety of reactions depending upon the areas of the shoreline. The various objections, often passionate, generally rely upon environmental arguments. And yet, objective data that would make it possible to evaluate the latter are in large part lacking. The government, accustomed to regulating fresh water, lacks benchmarks and experience in the marine environment. Property developers need basic outlines and data to build their cases. Scientists are called upon, in a national and international plan, to help aquafarming grow while respecting the environment. The common denominator for all questions is a lack of knowledge about the impact of the farms on the environment.