Objectives of the Forum

1. Identify key issues that the aquaculture sector is facing in terms of siting, access to sites, competing uses and ICZM
   
2. Identify key research questions that are linked to the issues that are identified through the realization of Objective 1
   
3. Identify preferred approach in order to initiate scientific research that will address the research questions that are identified through the realization of Objective 2
   

Deliverables

• A summary of issues
  
  • These issues are framed by the workshop theme and should not be misconstructed as the “only” issues facing the aquaculture sector
    
    
• A prioritized list of research questions
  • The participants went to great lengths in order to avoid the “shopping list” syndrome. While prioritization is already embedded in the process, the participants felt that the prioritization presented here should not lead to the elimination of any of the questions presented.
    
    
• A summary of research plans
  • Two things made the participants express reservations: (1) it seems difficult to mingle research methods and approaches as specific teams will call on specific expertise in order to design their research. The participants did not agree that they should begin the research process by defining the research design; and (2) the nature of the research funded by the NCE program calls for the development of particular types of interdisciplinary-intersectoral research teams. The participant felt that AquaNet should be proactive in facilitating the building of such teams.
    

Objective 1: key issues
(numbering does not reflect importance)

1. Need to clarify the ICZM concept as it relates to aquaculture
2. Site allocation and management regulatory framework not appropriate
3. Social perceptions - visual dimension as a key entry point
4. Carrying capacity in a multidimensional sense is not known
5. Multiple uses and usage comparability difficult or impossible
6. Jurisdictional inconsistencies
7. Community integration in decision making processes (culture, values, contribution to social capital etc.)
8. Lack of non-judicial dispute resolution mechanisms
9. Objectives in terms of environmental standards non-existent
10. Pace of change
11. Scale

Objective 2:

Research question (1): how can the site allocation and management approval process be effective and efficient?

• Urgent need for scientific support, deliverables in the next 2.5 years
  
• Inclusion of the following dimensions is critical:
  

1. identification of key environment standards (accepted by all regulatory authorities) that would govern site-related decisions
   
2. clarification and standardization of public consultations
   
3. monitoring (environmental, social and economic) of site allocation and management decisions
   
4. linkages between scientific evidence and decision
   

• -ADDRESSES ISSUES 2,3,6,7,8,9
  

Research questions (2) what are the effects of current ICZM initiatives? Is there a preferred route for ICZM implementation?

• Must start ASAP and produce output incrementally (combination of short-term and mid- term outputs carrying on to the long term)
• Inclusion of the following dimensions is critical:

1. existing models for alternate types of governance structures including the concept of nested ICZM (small to large scale)
2. inclusion of communities’ values
3. use conflicts and their management
4. temporal and geographical scale
5. information management
6. technological options
7. integration of local knowledge and perceptions
8. ICZM’s contribution to communities’ resiliency
9. ICZM’s potential contribution to prevention and control of invasive species
10. inclusion of the concept of full cost accounting

• ADDRESSES ISSUES 1,3,6,7,8,10,11
  
  

Research question (3) how can we understand a coastal ecosystem carrying capacity for multiple uses including aquaculture?

• Must start ASAP and produce output incrementally (combination of short-term and mid- term outputs carrying on to the long-term)
• Inclusion of the following dimensions is critical:

1. social, economic and natural subsystems carrying capacity
2. aquaculture technological options that could optimize this carrying capacity
3. micro-meso-or macro management options that could optimize this carrying capacity
4. interactions within subsystem
5. interactions between subsystems
6. threshold and limiting factors within sub-systems
7. identification of critical variables, operational criteria and indicators for decision-making
8. various forms of capitals and flows

• ADDRESSES ISSUES 3,4,5,9
  

Specific objective 3: Research plans

Nature of terms involved

1. interdisciplinary
2. strong participation and input from non-scientists (industry, communities, government etc.)
3. networked
4. well-integrated and having access to resources (administrative and technical) to manage the research

Approaches

1. adapted to the question at hand
2. will be determined by the team itself and the various contributions of the team members
3. can expect a mix of approaches that will need to clearly demonstrate their integration

If we want to achieve our objectives, we must consider the following:

1. the research questions formulated for the Call for Proposals should be consistent with what has been identified in the science forums
2. there is a need for facilitation of team-building by AquaNet
3. rushing the process may lead to poorly-integrated research teams, limited in terms of diversity
4. because of academic cycles, many projects will not start until next May.

The essence of short-term vs. long-term

The research questions proposed here will have to be approached incrementally (2.5 years then 7 years). It will be AquaNet’s responsibility to progressively track the progress made within a specific question.