Marine Bivalves’ Ecological Roles and Humans-Environmental Interactions to Achieve Sustainable Aquatic Ecosystems

Abstract

Bivalve species have a key role at the ecosystem level and a very interesting economic value. Globally, bivalve production is higher than 15 million tons. Thus, this work intends to highlight the economic value of these organisms, but mostly highlights the potential of this resource for water management and water quality improvement, and thus to the sustainability of aquatic systems, which gives them a particular interest. These organisms are under anthropogenic pressures becoming crucial to preserve aquatic systems and their communities, namely bivalve communities, and water quality by reducing pollution. UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) highlight the main actions to reduce humans’ footprint and to create globally a model to guarantee human security, to protect the environment and water quality and to combat climate changes. To achieve the UN SDGs, bivalves may have a high importance for sustainability and preservation of freshwater and marine systems (SDG 14), and for water management (SDG 6), due to their ability to improve the water quality by reduction of pollution. This work aims to highlight the main ecological roles of marine bivalves and the human actions that will contribute to achieve sustainable aquatic systems, and so the SDG 6 and SDG 14 by 2030.