industrialized nations can continue
the recent shifts in the contents of
their growth towards less material-
and energy-intensive activities and
the improvement of their efficiency in
many materials and energy (WCED
1987).
Ekins (1989) preferred routes to
sustainability based on improved human
welfare for the disadvantaged, not just
increases in production and consumption
and added the following:
In poverty-stricken countries one
can imagine a high weighting being
given to production even at some
environmental cost. In richer
countries, with long-term survival at
stake, as the [Brundtland]
Commission notes, therational choice
would tend to favour environment
and safety of the future, while of
course not ruling out the possibility
that some of these choices might also
produce some production growth.
Against such complexities, is
'sustainability' a realistic concept? The
word itself fails to combine a sense of
durability and adaptability - for whichit is
diffkult to find a single English word.
Development should comprise
evolutionary improvements in human
welfare for both rural areas and rapidly
growing cities and must make sense in
terms of changing internal and foreign
relations. "Evolvability" would be an
appropriate, though clumsy, term. Indeed
the fitness of organisms to their ecological
niches and the evolution of species are
useful analogies: capacity to adapt and
prosper depends upon diversity. Diversity
and scope for change in the technologies
implemented for aquaculture development
will be their best guarantee of lasting long
enough to make substantial,
environmentally compatible contributions
to development and of leading to further
positive changes. No system with human
interventions lasts unchanged indefinitely.
Altieri (1989) presented the following
conclusion on sustainability that can be
applied to aquaculture as well as
agriculture:
Current efforts aimed at soil and
water conservation, improved food
security, germplasm conservation, etc.
will serve to counteract hunger or loss
of resources temporarily .... However,
ultimatesustainability will bereached
as farmers: .... increase their access to
land, resources and a suitable
technology that allows them tomanage
these resources ecologically.Agroecology and the Inter-
action of Aqu,aculture
with Other Sectors
Agroecology is an approach advocated
for devising sustainable agricultural
systems and has been called a new
paradigm for world agriculture (Altieri
1989). It emphasizes'strength in diversity'
offarmingsystems. This approach i~nored,
however, the potential contributions of
aquatic production as did those of Charlton
(19871, Dover and Talbot (19871, Tivy
(1 %7), Edwards (1 989) and Pimentel et al.
(1989). In these and many other, otherwise
excellent publications, the authors' vision
was limited to terrestrial food production:
largely a crop sector viewpoint. Edwards
et al. (1988a) provided a framework for
integrated agriculture and inland
aquaculture but did not mention
agroforestry. Agroforestry scientists are
considering integration with crop and
livestock production, but not yet with
aquaculture (Hart 1987; Raintree and
Torres 1987). In other words, hardly
anyone has yet taken a truly holistic, all
sectors approach.
Aqunculturists must themselves avoid
similar narrowness ofvision and recognize
the very broad sectorally interdependent
context in which aquaculture development
takes place (Smith 1986). A broad
intersectoral approach, based on ecosystem
management, is essential for developing-
country aquaculture development.
Hopefully the realization will spread that