Oil pollution, municipal discharges, and waste waters from shrimp farms threaten the habitat of shrimps in the country’s sea waters. However, reduction in the availability of food may be another reason for the shortage of shrimp species in the benthic zone in some parts of the national waters.
The benthic zone is the ecological region at the lowest level of a body of water such as an ocean or a lake, including the sediment surface and some sub-surface layers.
According to studies conducted by the Hormozgan Fisheries Organization and the Iranian Fisheries Research Organization (IFRO), oil pollution resulting from fuel smuggling is the main reason for the loss of shrimp larvae in the region. Marine species coated by even small amounts of oil may be unable to swim or fly properly, maintain their body temperature, feed or even reproduce.
Production
The discharges and waste waters from cultured shrimp farms are cited as other reasons of the shrimp population decline. The food given to shrimps in the farm pools is often not used up completely; therefore many organic substances that are decomposing enter the sea as effluents from the pools, which damage and cause harm to the marine environment, IRNA reported. More studies need to be taken up on whether conserving natural resources of shrimps in the sea is more affordable and valuable than developing cultured shrimps farms or not. The decision needs to be evaluated, the IFRO said.
At present, the average amount of shrimp production in Hormozgan Province is 3000 tons annually, while the natural marine resources of shrimp are 1500-2000 tons.
