River-Based Cage Aquaculture of Tilapia in Northern Thailand: Sustainability of Rearing and Business Practices

Phimphakan Lebel,Patcharawalai Sriyasak,Jongkon Promya,Niwooti Whangchai,Prachaub Chaibu,Chanagun Chitmanat,Louis Lebel

doi:10.4236/nr.2013.45051

Abstract

Cage-based aquaculture in rivers raises issues of natural resource management more familiar to fisheries management than does aquaculture in fish ponds on private land. Hybrid red and black Nile tilapias (Oreochromis niloticus L) are reared for 4 - 5 months in cages in the upper Ping River in northern Thailand. Observed mean stocking density was 49 ± 16 fish·m-3, feed conversion ratio 1.47 ± 0.43 kg feed per kg fish and yield density 26.6 ± 8.1 kg·m-3. Input costs were dominated by feed (70%) and stock (16%). Most farms borrowed money and participated in contracts. Fish farming was usually a component of a portfolio of household activities but for some a core business. To succeed fish farmers must manage a combination of market, climate and environmental-related risks. Cage-based aquaculture in rivers faces many challenges; further research on farm practices and vulnerabilities, river and water management, and the commodity-chain are needed.

Highlights

Cage-based aquaculture in rivers and other public water bodies raises issues of natural resource management that are more familiar to fisheries management than does aquaculture in fish ponds on private land [1]
Aquaculture in ponds, reservoirs and rivers differs in key ways that are important to water management under changing conditions
Despite similarities in key inputs such as feed and stock, flows in rivers imply that diseases, waste effluents and other contaminants generated within aquaculture systems will be transported and shared downstream

Summary

Introduction

Cage-based aquaculture in rivers and other public water bodies raises issues of natural resource management that are more familiar to fisheries management than does aquaculture in fish ponds on private land [1]. Successful aquaculture depends on site selection, good quality water and the waste removal services of aquatic ecosystems. Understanding of rearing and business management practices in river-based cage aquaculture systems is fairly limited. The vast majority of studies of cage culture have been carried out in ponds, lakes or reservoirs. From these studies a few key messages about how fish rearing and business management practices influence sustainability have emerged

Methods

Discussion

Conclusion