4.3 Aquatic food production systems

Guiding questions

How are our diets impacted by our values and perspectives?
To what extent are aquatic food systems sustainable?

This is my video for the SL content in ESS topic 4.3. It aligns with the slide deck above.

SL and HL knowledge statements

Here’s a set of flashcards for the essential vocabulary and concepts in the SL and HL content of ESS topic 4.3 Aquatic food production systems

Play some games to see how well you have mastered the keywords and essential understandings for ESS topic 4.3 Aquatic food production systems.

4.3.1 Phytoplankton and macrophytes provide energy for freshwater and marine food webs.

This video is a great intro to the important role of plankton for marine food webs.

4.3.2 Humans consume organisms from freshwater and marine environments.

4.3.3 Demand for foods from freshwater and marine environments is increasing due to the growth in human population and changes in dietary preferences.

4.3.4 The increasing global demand for seafood has encouraged use of unsustainable harvesting practices and overexploitation.

4.3.5 Overexploitation has led to the collapse of fisheries.

4.3.6 The maximum sustainable yield (MSY) is the highest possible annual catch that can be sustained over time, so it should be used to set caps on fishing quotas.

4.3.7 Climate change and ocean acidification are having impacts on ecosystems and may cause collapse of some populations in freshwater or marine ecosystems.

Here’s a look at the effect of climate change on oceans.

4.3.8 Unsustainable exploitation of freshwater and marine ecosystems can be mitigated through policy legislation addressing the fishing industry and changes in consumer behaviour.

4.3.9 Marine protected areas (MPAs) can be used to support aquatic food chains and maintain sustainable yields.

4.3.10 Aquaculture is the farming of aquatic organisms, including fish, molluscs, crustaceans and aquatic plants. The industry is expanding to increase food supplies and support economic development, but there are associated environmental impacts.

This video is a comprehensive overview of aquaculture, addressing its benefits and limitations as well as mitigation strategies for its problems.

This video provides a clear explanation of IMTA as a sustainable approach to aquatic food production.

Knowledge statements for HL only

Here’s my video for the HL content in ESS topic 4.3 aquatic food production systems.

4.3.11 Productivity, thermal stratification, nutrient mixing and nutrient loading are interconnected in water systems.

4.3.12 Accurate assessment of fish stocks and monitoring of harvest rates are required for their conservation and sustainable use.

4.3.13 There are risks in harvesting fish at the maximum sustainable yield (MSY) rate and these risks need to be managed carefully.

4.3.14 Species that have been overexploited may recover with cooperation between governments, the fishing industry, consumers and other interest groups, including NGOs, wholesale fishery markets and local supermarkets.

4.3.15 According to the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), coastal states have an exclusive economic zone stretching 370 km out to sea, within which the state’s government can regulate fishing. Almost 60% of the ocean is the high seas outside these coastal zones, with limited intergovernmental regulation.

The first part of this video explains UNCLOS from a legal perspective, and the second part gives a brief overview of the South China Sea as an example of the challenges related to UNCLOS.

This news brief provides more details about the South China Sea dispute as it relates to UNCLOS.

4.3.16 Harvesting of seals, whales and dolphins raises ethical issues relating to the rights of animals and of indigenous groups of humans.

Practical activities

Copy from syllabus and expand.
Add from existing PSOW booklet.

Possible engagement opportunities

from official syllabus.
Turn into CAS suggestions connected to UN SDGs.

Happy learning!