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STRATHAV-Strategiske bevilgninger Havforskningsinstituttet

Strategiske satsinger ved Havforskningsinstituttet

Awarded: NOK 135.5 mill.

SIS Harvesting: An ecosystem approach to monitoring, research and advice, imposes great challenges in terms of data and methods, while adapting to ecosystems under rapid climate change. The project will improve the basis for sustainable fisheries management in the Norwegian Sea through developing knowledge of key ecosystem processes. We will investigate what controls Calanus finmarchicus dynamics and the key pelagic fish species, NSS herring, NEA mackerel, and blue whiting. We address how these three species impact each other through competition and predation, and other relevant ecosystem processes including ocean climate. Models will be used to analyze how changes in the ecosystem may influence sustainability in fisheries. New knowledge on competition between pelagic fish in the Norwegian Sea and migration patterns of herring and mackerel, diets in small pelagic fish, and causes of northern extension in mackerel is published. SIS Coast: The overall objective of this project is to develop and implement the first holistic Integrated Ecosystem Assessment (IEA) for Norwegian coastal waters, assessing impacts of multiple, interacting pressures related to climate warming, river runoff regulations (hydropower), pollution, fisheries, aquaculture, petroleum and marine transportation in a risk-based perspective. In addition, the project comprises in-depth scientific investigations of key coastal ecosystem components. The project comprises a multidisciplinary team of scientists and has interacted with stakeholders both from industry and management at regional and national levels. Through the project, major sectors impacting coastal ecosystems have been evaluated and described according to which pressures they exert to coastal waters, which functional groups of the ecosystem that are vulnerable to these pressures, and how the cumulative human activities vary from the southern to the northern Norwegian coast. Key pressures to coastal ecosystems have been identified and scored for selected regions with contrasting human use of the coastal marine environment, using a cumulative impact risk assessment framework. State and trends for coastal resources with high ecological or economic importance has been summarized from peer-reviewed and grey literature, including an assessment of their vulnerability to anthropogenic pressures from climate change and human activity. SIS Robust Smolt: The salmon industry has great challenges concerning animal welfare, diseases, and environmental impact. Millions of farmed fishes die each year from diseases, parasites, handling, and environmental stress. IMR assess how various strategies for year-around and intensive production of Atlantic salmon affects the smoltification process and later robustness and survival in sea water. Results show no effects on weight at slaughter, lice infection, and survival from use of only salt feed as a preparation for the sea water phase. Keeping the fish at elevated temperatures in tanks up to 1 kg size gave, however, a large increase in early maturation and slower growth in the sea cages. Salmon produced under continuous light had stronger physiological response to salmon lice infestations. We have analysed skin and mucus to identify possible indicators for smoltification, health, and welfare. We found that mucosal DNA concentration and DNA methylation were closely related to smoltification. We also found that the biomarkers (NKA-1ß) in the gill may be used as more non- invasive smoltification indicators. We have identified three candidate genes linked to traits such as disease resistance, smoltification, late maturation, and growth. We also investigate how the genotypes contribute to the smoltification process. We have also assessed the physiological effects of knocking out the enzyme NKA-1ß, known to be important to regulate seawater osmosis in the cells. SIS seafood: The nutrient and contaminant analyses required for the screening of new marine resources such as blue mussels processed as silage or meal, kelp either raw or fermented, different species of mesopelagic fish species were completed. Fermented kelp and blue mussels were found to be promising as feed ingredients for Atlantic salmon, but challenges with processing exist. Especially, blue mussel silage produced with high acid inclusion reduced growth and induced iron deficiency. The transfer of arsenic and its species from feed-to-fish-fillet was studied and found not to retained in the fish at the inclusion levels tested. In vitro toxicity of 3 different arsenic compounds (i.e. Arsenate, Arsenite and Arsenobetaine) in Atlantic salmon was evaluated by using a 3D hepatocyte model. Blue mussels and mesopelagic fish fed to mice to study human health effects, data are being analyzed. The ecosystem effects on low trophic farming was modelled with scenarios of mussel production for feed and as food are carried out on an ecosystem scale.

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STRATHAV-Strategiske bevilgninger Havforskningsinstituttet

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