Sustainability of Mussel (Mytilus Galloprovincialis) Farming in the Po River Delta, Northern Italy, Based on a Life Cycle Assessment Approach

Elisa Anna Fano,Elena Tamburini,Edoardo Turolla,Giuseppe Castaldelli

doi:10.3390/su12093814

Abstract

Molluscan shellfish aquaculture is considered a “green” industry because of the limited presence of chemicals and risk of pathogens during farming in licensed areas, which provide a safe, nutritive and healthy food source. Moreover, the environmental impact of their production is lower than all other fish animal per unit of protein. In particular, mussels’ production was the first organized mollusk aquaculture in Europe and is now one of the most extended. Italy is the second main European producer of mussels. Taking into account the relevance of the sector, Italian Mediterranean mussel (Mytilus galloprovincialis) aquaculture has been considered for a life cycle assessment (LCA), from a cradle-to-gate perspective. The mussel farms were located in the northern Adriatic Sea, close to the Po River Delta, a region traditionally vocated to bivalve aquaculture. Results have shown that the growing and harvesting phases are the most critical life cycle stages (“hotspots”) due to the production and use of boats, and the great quantity of non-recyclable high-density polyethylene (HDPE) socks used during the yearly productive cycle. Several improvement potentials have been identified and estimated by means of a sensitivity analysis. Furthermore, regarding the principal exporting countries to Italy (Spain and Chile), the transport factors in an overall sustainability assessment have been considered, in order to compare the local and global mussels supply chain.

Highlights

In recent years, the global demand of fisheries has been constantly increased
This study followed the standardized method for life cycle assessment (LCA), set up to evaluate the potential impacts associated with a product or a process by analysing and estimating the abiotic and biotic resources consumed and outputs emitted into the environment during all steps of its life cycle, from the raw material extraction up to the end-of-life [24]
The Non-Methane Volatile Organic Compounds (NMVOC) are the main contributors to the Photochemical oxidant formation potential (POFP) because they are oxidized to the ozone by sunlight in the troposphere

Summary

Introduction

The global demand of fisheries has been constantly increased. While capture fisheries’ production has been slowing down as far as fish stocks have been over-exploited due to the difficulty of making management models prevail over the overwhelming law of the market, aquaculture is a world commodity in constant growth and enables to meet the ever increasing food demand driven by population growth [1]. Since the feed for these species are almost entirely prepared with fish meal, this means, as for some meat productions, that aquaculture is developing out of sustainability criteria [4]. Such a rapid expansion worldwide has led coastal ecosystems to serious environmental damage, especially caused by uncontrolled expansion and monoculturing systems [5]. Compared with other aquacultured species of fish and seaweeds, filters-feeding bivalves have lower growing requirements and, as a consequence, lower impacts on coastal ecosystems [9]

Methods

Results

Conclusion