POSTER Session 1

Evaluating the effects of the water shrimp farms in the optic water column properties in the Gulf of California Mexico

One of the main economic activities in the coastal zone of the Gulf of California Mexico is shrimp aquaculture. Aquaculture ponds have the potential to alter coastal water quality by increasing particulate organic matter including phytoplankton and detrital matter and colored dissolved organic matter. Subsequent changes in water column optical properties may be observable in the long-term satellite ocean color record as shrimp farm aquaculture has increased over the last two decades. Here weekly averages were constructed from daily multi-sensor OC-CCI images at 1km resolution from 2003 to 2022 along the Gulf of California. In particular, we assessed how light attenuation (Kd490) and Remote Sensing Reflectance (Rrs) at 560 nm and 665 nm changed in regions influenced by shrimp aquaculture. We carefully selected products more robust to “Case 2” conditions, such as Rrs and Kd490, in order to better evaluate changes related to particulate and dissolved matter in these optically complex waters. Our results showed that shrimp farms impacted Kd490 in coastal waters <50 m depth significantly in spring and summer conditions. Compared to regions outside the shrimp farm, Kd490 increased 1.6-fold. Differences in water quality were observed out to 20 km from the coast. We hypothesize that the major impact of aquaculture may be a flux of detrital matter to the seafloor that becomes resuspended during winter mixing events and decreases light penetration. The impacts of these changes to Anthropogenic changes shrimp farming could have lasting impacts on coastal water quality.

*David González-Rivas, Departamento de Hidrobiología, Universidad Autónoma Metropolitana Unidad Iztapalapa, México

Felipe Omar Tapia-Silva, Departamento de Hidrobiología, Universidad Autónoma Metropolitana Unidad Iztapalapa, México

Heidi Dierssen, Department of Marine Sciences, University of Connecticut, USA

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