Funding initiative on aquaculture: Process-accompanying sustainability assessment on research and development projects under the DBU funding initiative 'Sustainable Aquaculture'

In the light of stagnant marine fish catch numbers and an even declining level that is likely to be achieved by marine fisheries in the future, a number of governments, institutions (such as the World Bank or the International Monetary Fund), research groups and the fishing industry were pinning their hopes on a further expansion of fish breeding in aquaculture systems in order to meet the increasing demand for fish in the future. Against this background, the Deutsche Bundesstiftung Umwelt (DBU; German Environmental Foundation) in 2009 put out for tender a funding initiative titled 'Sustainable Aquaculture', which aimed to promote the development of innovative aquaculture systems contributing to more sustainability. The project imposed a process-accompanying sustainability assessment on research and development projects related to acquaculture and promoted in the framework of the new funding initiative. In a life-cycle oriented approach, it should, more particularly, be analysed and quantified for each individual project whether, to which extent and possibly under which conditions relevant optimisation potentials could be tapped with regard to sustainability aspects. At crucial junctures which offer various options for development, it could hence be ensured that the objectives set out on commencement of the project would be achieved. Due to the methodological approach applied in all relevant research issues, this project may be regarded as a pilot project.