The food-water quality nexus in periurban aquacultures downstream of Bangkok, Thailand

Abstract

Peri-urban aquacultures produce nutritious food in proximity to markets, but poor surface water quality in rapidly expanding megacities threatens their success in emerging economies. Our study compared, for a wide range of parameters, water quality downstream of Bangkok with aquaculture regulations and standards. For parameters not meeting those requirements, we sought to establish whether aquaculture practice or external factors were responsible. We applied conventional and advanced methods, including micropollutant analysis, genetic markers, and 16S rRNA amplicon sequencing, to investigate three family-owned aquacultures spanning extensive, semi-intensive and intensive practices. Canals draining the city of Bangkok did not meet quality standards for water to be used in aquaculture, and were sources for faecal coliforms, Bacteriodes, Prevotella, Human E. coli, tetracycline resistance genes, and nitrogen into the aquaculture ponds. Because of these inputs, aquacultures suffered algae blooms, with and without fertilizer and feed addition to the ponds. The aquacultures were sources of salinity and the herbicide diuron into the canals. Diuron was detectable in shrimp, but not at a level of concern to human health. Given the extent and nature of pollution, peri-urban water policy should prioritize charging for urban wastewater treatment over water fees for small-scale agricultural users. The extensive aquaculture attenuated per year an estimated twenty population equivalents of nitrogen pollution and trillions of faecal coliform bacteria inputs from the canal. Extensive aquacultures could thus contribute to peri-urban blue-green infrastructures providing ecosystem services to the urban population such as flood risk management, food production and water pollution attenuation.