better shrimp farming in java
walhi/friends of the earth
indonesia
 |
In the early 1990s, most of the
intensive shrimp ponds in Java and
other parts of Indonesia collapsed
due to a shrimp disease called white
spot virus. The virus, for which
there is no cure, was particularly
damaging to intensive aquaculture
ponds. In addition, intensive shrimp
farming destroyed mangroves and
polluted the water. Indebted farmers
sold their lands to money lenders;
most of them eventually ended up
working at these same ponds which
were bought by local elite.
|
Intensive shrimp farming has proven to
be unsustainable. The ponds last only a few
years, and they pollute the environment
enormously with wasted shrimp feed,
antibiotics and chemical fertilizers.
Indonesia has the highest concentration of
shrimp ponds in the world, occupying some
400,000 hectares of land.
traditional vs. intensive shimp
farming
Aquaculture is the main activity for
most of the farmers in the Sidoarjo region
of East Java. They have practiced
environmentallyfriendly traditional shrimp
and fish culture, with no industrial and
chemical inputs, for the last 400 years.
Shrimp are fed with plankton that is washed
into the ponds by tidal currents.
In the mid-1980s, the Indonesian
government and multinational feed companies
actively promoted intensive shrimp farming,
taking advantage of existing shrimp ponds
in Indonesia and elsewhere in Asia .
Several demonstration ponds were
constructed in order to influence local
farmers to opt for this quicker, higher
production method of aquaculture. The World
Bank and the Asian Development Bank
provided the government with loans in order
to promote the development of intensive
ponds.
As a result, the use of shrimp feed and
chemical inputs increased drastically, and
diverse polyculture ponds were quickly
transformed into monoculture shrimp ponds.
Today, farmers spend almost 60 percent of
their production costs for shrimp feed and
antibiotics. Some 25 percent of the feed is
not consumed by the shrimp, and it settles
on the bottom of the pond.
transforming shrimp
production
|
Learning from the failure of these
intensive ponds, shrimp farmers in
Sidoarjo opted for a complete
transformation. Avoiding industrial
and chemical inputs, they readopted
local methods of aquaculture, and
have been cultivating shrimp in the
traditional manner together with fish
since 1997. Some innovations have
been added: for example, organic
fertilizer is used to generate algae
and plankton for food.
Today, nearly 90 percent of the
ponds in the Sidoarjo region are
traditional, polyculture ponds. The
community is also rehabilitating the
mangroves and local ecosystems. The
previous dependancy on corporate
aquaculture products no longer
exists.
|
 |
Other farmers, as well as shrimp
importers from Japan and the European Union
, are following the Sidoarjo initiative
with interest as a model to be
replicated.
