ABSTRACT

As on land, the water, energy, biomass, minerals, and land nexus or five-node nexus is one of on the one hand interdependence, and on the other, co-mingled environmental impacts and inevitable trade-offs. This chapter explores the trends in food, water, energy, minerals, and use of space in the ocean realm and reveals the ways that agricultural and energy production on land has and will continue to impinge on future options for obtaining resources from the sea. It discusses the pressure on wild stocks of forage fish to be made into fishmeal. Fish products provide essential proteins for human consumption globally, with regional variations. Marine fisheries products are essential to support human populations, not only in coastal but in inland areas as well. Aquaculture is both a lucrative business enterprise and a means for assuring local food security in underdeveloped regions. By far the most profitable aquaculture industries are those that produce high-value product, including shrimp and salmon.