Title of thesis:
Aquaculture in a changing Climate
Title of trial lecture:
More information coming soon
Evaluation committee:
- Associate Professor Jorge Garcia Molinos, Arctic Research Center, Hokkaido University, Japan
- Director Gregor Reid, Centre for Marine Applied Research, Canada
- Associate Professor Marit Bjørnevik, Faculty of Biosciences and Aquaculture (FBA), Nord University, Norway
Supervisory committee:
- Professor Mark John Costello, Faculty of Biosciences and Aquaculture (FBA), Nord University, Norway
- Professor II Jorge Manuel Ferreira de Assis, Faculty of Biosciences and Aquaculture (FBA), Nord University, Norway
- Professor II Barry Costa-Pierce, Faculty of Biosciences and Aquaculture (FBA), Nord University, Norway
- Associate Professor Alexander Oliver Jüterbock, Faculty of Biosciences and Aquaculture (FBA), Nord University, Norway
- Professor Joost Andre M Raeymaekers, Faculty of Biosciences and Aquaculture (FBA), Nord University, Norway
Thesis summary:
Climate change is transforming the global oceans at an unprecedented rate, impacting species, environments, and the industries that depend on them. In particular, marine aquaculture is vulnerable to environmental shifts as species are constrained to an area and unable to track their ideal climates. This thesis investigated the impacts climate change may have on mariculture under various climate change futures.
Assessing the exposure of mariculture species to climate change revealed that, under a sustainability scenario, mariculture regions are projected to maintain environments similar to current conditions. However, under increased emissions scenarios, more than 60% of countries were projected to experience moderate to extreme dissimilar environments compared to current conditions. Under these increased emissions scenarios, high-value mariculture producers retained almost all their current mariculture species. In contrast, countries with medium or low-value mariculture industries were projected to face substantial species losses, with potentially significant economic consequences.
Additionally, this thesis revealed that the thermal suitability of three economically impactful sea lice species is projected to shift polewards, aligning with the projected distribution shifts of their farmed host salmonid species. This suggests that biotic stressors will accompany the geographic expansions of mariculture and continue to challenge industries under climate change.
This thesis provides insight into the challenges and opportunities that mariculture could face under climate change, emphasising the need to reduce greenhouse gas emissions to future-proof global mariculture.
