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The tale of the river Scheldt as told by historic maps – Building an RShiny ‘side-by-side viewer’ to visualize 16<sup>th</sup>-20<sup>th</sup> century maps
Full text linkSewage-derived resort runoff threatens coral reefs? A pilot isotopic assessment of nitrogen at Pulau Redang, Malaysia
Full text linkOverzicht van het onderzoekslandschap en de wetenschappelijke informatie inzake (marien) zwerfvuil en microplastics in België
Full text linkThe sustainability conundrum of fishmeal substitution by plant ingredients in shrimp feeds
Full text linkAquaculture is central in meeting expanding global demands for shrimp consumption. Consequently, increasing feed use is mainly responsible for the overall environmental impact of aquaculture production. Significant amounts of fishmeal are included in shrimp diets, causing dependency on finite marine resources. Driven by economic incentives, terrestrial plant ingredients are widely viewed as sustainable alternatives. Incremental fishmeal substitution by plant ingredients in shrimp feed was modeled and effects on marine and terrestrial resources such as fish, land, freshwater, nitrogen, and phosphorus were assessed. We find that complete substitution of 20–30% fishmeal totals could lead to increasing demand for freshwater (up to 63%), land (up to 81%), and phosphorus (up to 83%), while other substitution rates lead to proportionally lower impacts. These findings suggest additional pressures on essential agricultural resources with associated socio-economic and environmental effects as a trade-off to pressures on finite marine resources. Even though the production of shrimp feed (or aquafeed in general) utilizes only a small percentage of the global crop production, the findings indicate that the sustainability of substituting fishmeal by plant ingredients should not be taken for granted, especially since aquaculture has been one of the fastest growing food sectors. Therefore, the importance of utilizing by-products and novel ingredients such as microbial biomass, algae, and insect meals in mitigating the use of marine and terrestrial resources is discussed
Mare Geneticum: towards an implementing agreement for marine genetic resources in international waters
Full text linkA fair and effective regime regulating benefit-sharing of marine genetic resources (MGR) in areas beyond national jurisdiction (ABNJ) must consider the inclusion of developing states, support scientific research and safeguard investments of the private sector. The present innovative proposal ensures a delicate balance through an approach based on open access, albeit with limitations. Access to MGR in ABNJ is facilitated, but conditional on the public release of collected samples and raw data. Adoption of the open access principle guarantees a powerful form of non-monetary benefit-sharing. The balance is maintained by the option for an extended embargo period, allowing samples and data to be kept confidential for a certain period, against payment to a biodiversity contribution fund. Monetary benefit-sharing, as a sector-negotiated percentage on revenue, could be imposed at the point of product commercialisation, and would offer a tangible payment system with a low transaction cost
Valuing marine ecosystems: taking into account the value of ecosystem benefits in the Blue Economy
Full text linkThis publication highlights current thinking in ecosystem service valuation for the marine environment. Valuation of the direct and indirect benefits (for either societal welfare, healthand economic activities) stemming from marine ecosystem services, can help to assess the long-term sustainability of blue growth, support policy development and marinemanagement decisions, and raise awareness of the importance of the marine environment to society and in the economy. Recommendations are made on how to incorporate outputsfrom valuation studies into the traditional analyses used in resource and environmental economics and into the European marine policy landscape and related management anddecision making choices
