Autor(es): Rubén Manrique, Alejandro Deville del Águila, Ramzy Kahhat Abedrabbo, Ian Vázquez Rowe
Purpose Biodiversity impacts of the Peruvian fisheries, strongly influenced by El Niño-Southern Oscillation (ENSO), are not fully covered by current life cycle impact assessment (LCIA) models. While the recently developed Fisheries Impact Pathway (FIP) accounts for the impacts of marine biotic resource depletion, key methodological challenges, such as temporality, critical for impact assessment in dynamic fisheries, remain unattended. In the current study, we aim to develop characterization factors (CFs) for 10 relevant Peruvian fishing stocks, including Peruvian anchoveta, using an enhanced FIP framework. Methods The methodological framework includes 1) optimization of CMSY++ performance using an exhaustive statistical analysis, to provide reliable estimates for subsequent CF calculations; 2) calculation of CF time series under an Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) approach; and, 3) statistical evaluation of enhanced CFs comprising typical uncertainty and sensitivity analyses, along with other tests addressing ecological soundness and stock management; and, 4) application of CFs in case studies to quantify biodiversity impacts from fishing for direct and indirect human consumption. Results and discussion Enhanced CFs deviate up to 4 orders of magnitude from previously reported values, usually showing lower values. These CFs also exhibit weak-moderate statistical correlation with typical ENSO indices, with sea level anomalies showing the strongest relationship. Furthermore, case studies framed in the Peruvian EEZ confirm the relevance of the enhanced CFs, unveiling significant differences in fishing impacts of stocks destined to direct human consumption during years with El Niño and La Niña events, and additional LCIA impacts, ranging from 0.1% to 61% in fishmeal and fish oil production among plants of a major producer, during years 2019 and 2021. Together, these findings suggest that addressing temporality is critical to refine LCIA results, especially in systems with highly dynamic parameters. Conclusions and recommendations The enhanced CF time series more accurately represents stock population dynamics, under fluctuating climatic stressors and management regimes, than the original FIP method. Thus, our method responds to the call of international LCA guidelines for regionalized and temporally explicit impact assessment. We recommend using these CFs to assess biotic resource depletion in Peruvian seafood and aquaculture systems, and extending our methodology to other EEZs affected by similar ecosystem dynamics and fishing pressure.
Descargar publicación (7,69 MB)Autor(es): Eizo Muñoz Sovero, Ramzy Kahhat Abedrabbo, Alejandro Deville del Águila, Diana Ita Nagy, Ian Vázquez Rowe
Illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fishing activities have historically been difficult to detect due to a lack of adequate monitoring and surveillance technologies. In recent years, advances in computational capacity and the growing availability of fleet tracking datasets have enabled the development of algorithm-based tools for monitoring fishing activity. Additionally, satellite geolocation systems, such as Automatic Identification Systems (AIS) and Vessel Monitoring Systems (VMS), have been implemented across multiple fishing fleets worldwide, further enhancing surveillance capabilities. The current study proposes the combined use of AIS and VMS data with satellite imagery to detect and characterize IUU activities of foreign fishing vessels targeting the tuna fishery in the Peruvian Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) in the year 2022. Fishing effort was quantitatively characterized according to permit compliance considering three categories of IUU activities: fishing beyond the permit timeframe, inside a marine protected area (MPA), or without a valid permit. Out of a total sample of 61 vessels evaluated, 56 were detected fishing within the Peruvian EEZ, of which 47 operated within allowed permit lengths, 6 exceeded their authorized days within the EEZ, and 3 had no permit at all. However, of the 47 vessels complying with their permit timeframes, 16 engaged in IUU fishing within the Dorsal de Nasca MPA. These results revealed distinct behavioral patterns of fishing effort not only within the Peruvian EEZ, but also within the broader Eastern Pacific Ocean.
Ir al enlaceAutor(es): Ramzy Kahhat Abedrabbo, Ian Vázquez Rowe y David Baptista de Sousa
The marine ingredients (MIs) industry is essential to the aquaculture sector, mainly providing fishmeal and fish oil to support animal feed and human nutrition. The exponential growth of aquaculture and the heavy reliance on finite marine resources pose significant sustainability challenges and highlight the need for more comprehensive and regionally adapted metrics beyond current Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) indicators and nonconventional LCA metrics. In this systematic review, we analyzed 48 literature studies that focus on the sustainability of MIs using rigorous criteria for data quality and indicator relevance under the Prisma methodology. Our findings indicate that the studies that are mainly based on conducting an LCA provide valuable insights into environmental performance, but are hindered by inconsistent metrics, limited data availability, and a lack of integration of economic, nutritional, and ethical dimensions in the sustainability analysis. Such limitations can lead to underestimate critical issues such as biodiversity loss, overfishing, habitat degradation, or the impact of illegal fishing, while overemphasizing short-term efficiency measures, like feed conversion ratio, or environmental impacts such as global warming. Additionally, emerging novel proteins and alternative uses for fish-derived byproducts, ranging from direct human consumption to high-value applications (bioactive compounds, cosmetics, etc.) to lower value products (like biofertilizers), remain largely unexplored, given the absence of holistic and flexible assessment tools. Thus, the presence of unregulated contaminants (including additives, antibiotics and microplastics), are not yet adequately addressed in most MIs studies, despite some recent methodological advancements. This review proposes the adoption of novel metrics, the standardization of assessment methods and the integration of multi-criteria decision analysis for LCA practitioners to better capture the complex and multifaceted challenges of MIs production, covering the way for more robust and reliable sustainability assessments. within the aquaculture industry
Ir al enlaceAutor(es): Diana Ita Nagy, Ian Vázquez Rowe, Ramzy Kahhat Abedrabbo
Comprehensive methods for estimating mismanaged waste accumulation in the environment are limited, especially in the Global South, and new technologies are urgently needed. Here, we applied the Azure system, a physical floating barrier designed to retain and extract river floating waste while providing observational data of mismanaged waste, comparing results with a modeling tool that uses material flow analysis toprovide estimates of mismanaged waste, incorporating environmental and socioeconomic factors. The Azure system was installed at the Portoviejo River (Ecuador), and anthropogenic litter was removed, extracted, weighed, and classified. Approximately 13.8 tonnes (t) of litter were collected over 2 years of sampling, of which 87% were plastic bags containing domestic waste. About 45% of the total waste collected, that is, 6.2 t, was estimated to be plastic waste. In contrast, modeled mismanaged plastic waste estimates for the Portoviejo River varied between 148 and 1858 t per year, at least two orders of magnitude higher than field data. These results highlight the discrepancy that can occur between observational data and waste estimates.The factors that contribute to this are discussed here to help understand riverine waste sources and transport to the ocean.The results emphasize the need for a better understanding of socioeconomic and environmental aspects in the Global South to help the development of better modeling tools. Our findings of domestic deposition as a major source of riverine contamination in the Portoviejo watershed emphasize the importance of waste management for tackling river contamination. Effective monitoring tools, such as the Azure system, could help improve this.
Ir al enlaceAutor(es): Alejandro Deville del Águila, Ian Vázquez Rowe, Angel Avadí, Ramzy Kahhat Abedrabbo
The anchoveta (Engraulis ringens) fishery in Peru, which is almost entirely devoted to the production of fishmeal and fish oil, is one of the largest fisheries in the world. It is volatile in terms of fishing stock availability, and the fishmeal industry has been subject to technological changes to upgrade its efficiency and reduce costs to maintain its competitiveness. The objective of this study is to apply the Life Cycle Assessment methodology to the production and exportation of fishmeal and fish oil products related to a relevant producer in Peru, representing 10 % of national production. A set of 169 vessels targeting E. ringens were inventoried, 88 % of which are owned by third parties, and four factories belonging to the company were assessed for the years 2019 and 2021. Ecoinvent was the selected database to support the life cycle inventory, and ReCiPe 2016 and IPCC 2021 were the methods applied to compute the environmental impacts. The results show that fuel combustion in fishmeal and fish oil production was the dominating activity in most of the impact categories analyzed. In terms of greenhouse gas emissions, it was found that, on average, approximately 320 kg CO2eq and 4430 kg CO2eq are emitted due to the production of 1 t of fishmeal and 1 t of fish oil, respectively, when an energy allocation is followed. The fishery accounted for ca. 45 % of greenhouse gas emissions and dominated most of the impact categories, showing greater influence of the fishing stage than in previous studies. The reasons behind are linked to the combined influence of improvements in the energy matrix of the plants, by prioritizing natural gas over diesel and residual fuel oils, and a slightly higher fuel use intensity of the fishing fleet. E. ringens quality was found to be an important parameter, as low protein or fat yields translate into substantially higher impacts. Finally, although Peruvian fishmeal and fish oil remain as one of the lowest environmental footprint products among animal feed, future work is needed to understand the effects that climate change and El Niño-Southern Oscillation events have on this industry.
Ir al enlaceAutor(es): Alejandro Deville del Águila, Ian Vázquez Rowe, Ramzy Kahhat Abedrabbo
Microplastic (MP) pollution has been largely documented in aquaculture systems, farmed animals, fishmeal, and feed, as well as in humans due to ingestion from food, including seafood, although a skew remains with fisheries and supply chains more commonly assessed for MP pollution in the Global North. In this sense, the main objective of this short communication is to explore how Peru, the biggest fishmeal, and fish oil (FMFO) producer worldwide, performs in terms of plastic pollution in fisheries and derived seafood products. For this, the available scientific literature has been analyzed. Our analysis suggests that studies in Peru are scarce, and more research must be undergone to evaluate the full extent of plastic pollution in its seafood supply chains. The literature analyzed suggests that pelagic species are more vulnerable to MP exposure and ingestion, and that a gradient in terms of closeness to the coast and depth of the fishery may be determining the level of occurrence and abundance of MPs in Peruvian fisheries. Furthermore, the combination of lack of measures for controlling plastic leakage to the ocean in Peru, with the closeness to the coast of most fishing grounds makes the Peruvian fishing industry highly vulnerable to plastic pollution. In this sense, as the Peruvian FMFO industry overwhelmingly targets anchoveta (Engraulis ringens), a pelagic fish, MP pollution of FMFO products must be monitored, as occurrence could lead to an introduction of MPs in aquaculture products worldwide and subsequent human consumption.
Ir al enlaceAutor(es): André Torre, Ian Vázquez Rowe, Ramzy Kahhat Abedrabbo
Wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) are not specifically designed to tackle microplastics (MPs), leaving them in aquatic ecosystems. The novelty of our study is a critical review of the effectiveness of conventional activated sludge (CAS), membrane bioreactors (MBRs), and activated granular sludge (AGS) in managing MPs within WWTPs. We bridge a gap in scientific literature by assessing MP removal and resilience to MPs. Our scope extends beyond MPs management, evaluating these technologies against environmental, economic, and social criteria. Findings show that MBR outperforms CAS and AGS in MP removal but faces challenges with smaller MPs due to fouling and secondary pollution. AGS shows similar removal rates to CAS but often superior resilience to MPs, given its higher decontamination capabilities. Environmentally, AGS may better reduce indirect greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions due to lower energy and chemical demands. Moreover, AGS exhibits higher resource recovery potential (e.g., biopolymers, phosphates). Socially, MBR excels in pathogen removal, reducing waterborne disease risks. Economically, AGS is the most cost-effective technology regarding both operational and capital expenditures. However, MPs can impact these criteria by reducing nutrient removal efficiency and increasing both direct and indirect GHGs. MPs create “plastisphere” habitats, reducing pathogen removal and compromising water safety. Moreover, MPs increase energy and chemical use, especially in MBR systems due to fouling concerns.
Ir al enlaceAutor(es): Joan Sánchez Matos, Ian Vázquez Rowe, Ramzy Kahhat Abedrabbo
Water scarcity is a critical environmental challenge which will be exacerbated by the effects of climate change and increased human demand. Hence, more precise and realistic methods of quantifying this impact are necessary. In this sense, the present study proposes updated water scarcity characterization factors (CFs) for watersheds in Peru using the AWARE method. The novelty is linked to the consideration of present and future conditions, as well as quasi-cyclical climatic events such as El Niño.
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