Significance of blue carbon in ecological aquaculture in the context of interrelated issues: a case study of Costa Rica

There is an increasing global awareness of the socioeconomic and ecological significance of coastal and marine ecosystems and aquaculture. Marine ecosystems have been substantially affected by unsustainable exploitation and abuse, leading to their degradation and decline in their capacity to provide ecosystems services. The focus of this chapter is on blue carbon stocks and their significance in coastal marine aquaculture. This chapter presents a holistic discussion of blue carbon and aquaculture, which touches upon multiple factors that are intricately linked, thus requiring elaboration of the complexity of the factors. In ecological aquaculture, stability of ecosystem is vitally important, and it is this stability which is threatened by aquaculture if carried out as an activity that is not consistent with the environmental thresholds. Many intensive aquaculture practices which disturbed the functional capacity of critical coastal ecosystem have failed to recognize the impacts of such activities on long-term food supply. Blue carbon is a term that has been coined to refer to carbon sequestration and storage in aquatic vegetation ecosystems. It is part of a trend in the sustainability literature that seeks to highlight the importance of ecosystem services in order to promote their conservation within diverse institutional alternatives to command and control policies. One of these alternatives is the global carbon market, which may provide financial incentives to protect and conserve natural ecosystems through the development of carbon offset projects. Specifically, blue carbon offset projects may provide additional incentives to protect and rehabilitate mangrove ecosystems in synchronization with aquaculture production. Aquaculture that is compatible with conservation of aquatic vegetation ecosystems is resilient and fares better in terms of sustainability. This not only helps aquaculture supply more aquatic food but also plays a responsible role towards fisheries and mitigating the effects of climate change. Given the fact that the topic of blue carbon is still in its nascent stage, there are a number of interrelated issues that need to be discussed to understand the key ingredients required to develop the linkages between blue carbon and aquaculture. An exclusive focus on blue carbon vis-à-vis aquaculture ignores the other related factors, resulting in a discussion that is not adequate in terms of its outcomes for integrated management of coastal marine resources for sustainable seafood supplies. This chapter, therefore, will distil the current science and implementation mechanisms of blue carbon projects and highlight their links with ecological aquaculture. The topic of blue carbon and aquaculture has not been discussed in scientific or grey literature, and this chapter intends to provide a novel approach that explains the synergies that may be achievable between blue carbon and ecological aquaculture through a case study in Costa Rica