Fishy Business: Are Salmon Food or Fiends?

As the world's supply of fish depletes, many turn to fisheries and fish farms as a solution to the unmet growing demand. For those of you wondering what on earth a fish farm is, its probably exactly what you are thinking: a place where fish are raised and "cultivated".
Similar to all forms of food production, aquaculture has its pros and cons. Some of these pros include decreasing the pressure on wild fish populations and allowing for a more controlled environment to meet the demands of consumers. However, aquaculture's vices can be almost equally as environmentally damaging as its counterparts; such as run off produces from nutrient-enriched waters caused by fish feed and feces, and the use of other organism's habitats to raise the fish, whether it be a artificially constructed farm or a regulated area of a natural body of water.

As of the fall of 2014, Tasmanian salmon producers have been pushing for a doubling in size within the next 15 years to meet the growing demand. Tassal, the largest producer of salmon in Tasmania, represented by the head of sustainability Linda Sams, says that "by 2030 we talk about doubling our production, but there's a number of ways we'll do that.We'll do that through actually growing more fish, but we'll actually do that as well by growing fish more efficiently". However, concerns of pollution from the salmon cages and habitat invasion grow as the salmon industry does.
A scientific report conducted by Environment Tasmania found major gaps in Tassal's environmental monitoring, ultimately calling for urgent research on the direct that the company has on the surrounding waters, which are visibly murkier since the start of this company.
So ultimately this issue leaves us with several important questions:
How do we meet a growing demand for fish?
To what extent must the environment suffer at the expense of human need?
Are salmon the friendliest fish to farm, or environmental fiends. Stay tuned...

Author: Alicia Menendez
Sources:  http://www.abc.net.au/news/2014-09-30/controversial-plans-to-expand-tasmanian-farmed-salmon-industry/5780140

Extra: Video on Australian Salmon farms: http://www.abc.net.au/news/2014-09-30/are-salmon-farms-damaging-australian-waters/5780642