Shrimp Cultivation with Water Salinity in Bangladesh: The Implications of an Ecological Model

Abstract

Despite unplanned and haphazard expansion of shrimp cultivation that immensely affects on the coastal regions of Bangladesh, the exploration of its adverse effects has not received significant attention from the researcher community yet. There were few researches and studies in Bangladesh conducted to elicit the colossal effects of shrimp production at different times that did not particularize its focus on proposing an ecological design of shrimp production. In order to elicit the concomitant impacts and propose an ecological model of shrimp cultivation based on secondary data, the present study was conducted by applying ‘Systematic Review and Content Analysis’ as research method. The study findings manifest that the continuous and unregulated shrimp farming has immense impacts on human health, ecology, environment and sustainability though few of them directly benefit the shrimp farmers and the people who live around them. The extensive farming systems negatively expedite the processes: infringement of mangroves, intrusion of salinity, degradation of land, de-stabilization of coastal ecosystems. The major socio-economic effects challenge the patterns of livelihood pattern, displacement of family and social structure, internal migration, and livestock. The coastal regions suffer from environmental degradation due to increased salinity of soil, canals and ponds within dams, reduction in grazing field and livestock, changes in the cropping calendar and its pattern, bio-diversity. Ecological aspects and sustainability are also overlooked during the shrimp cultivation. In conclusion, proper implementation of the resilient strategies designed in an ecological model can minimize the adverse effects on the coastal dwellers and local environment, and improve the unplanned shrimp cultivation process in similar areas of Bangladesh.