Managing bivalve aquaculture to enhance blue carbon ecosystems and carbon sequestration
Transforming food production is essential for reducing impacts on habitats, biodiversity and climate. This review evaluates how regenerative bivalve aquaculture can contribute to blue‑carbon ecosystems—including seagrasses, mangroves, tidal marshes, macroalgae, tidal flats and marine sediments—while identifying the negative effects that must be avoided to prevent greenhouse‑gas emissions. The authors outline ecological processes enhanced by farmed bivalves that may support carbon cycling and storage, emphasizing that aquaculture must be designed with carbon benefits in mind. When responsibly implemented, restorative bivalve aquaculture can strengthen protection of coastal ecosystems and contribute to climate‑mitigation strategies.
Subject Tags
- Aquaculture
- Blue carbon
- Coastal
Abstract
Transforming the way food is produced to address its widespread negative effects on habitats, biodiversity and climate change is emerging as a priority intervention for achieving global goals for sustainable and equitable development. If the negative effects of industry activity are mitigated, regenerative farming approaches offer an opportunity to shape reciprocal solutions that can reduce these impacts and provide food and nutritional outcomes alongside ecological benefits. We review the potential for bivalve aquaculture to contribute positively to blue carbon ecosystems, coastal and marine environments that are critical to ocean carbon cycling and storage (seagrasses, mangroves and tidal marshes) and other highly productive or depositional coastal ecosystems (macroalgae, tidal flats and marine sediment). We identify the negative effects of bivalve aquaculture that must be avoided and mitigated to ensure farming does not generate environmental greenhouse gas emissions and discuss the ecological processes bivalves in a farmed environment enhance that could enable the industry to positively support ocean carbon sequestration in these ecosystems. If designed and used with the benefits of carbon cycling and storage in mind, restorative bivalve aquaculture could be used to increase protection of these important ecosystems and mitigative efforts for climate change.
Citation
Alleway, H. K., Gentry, R. R., Smart, L., Jones, A. R., & Mackay, J. (2025). Managing bivalve aquaculture to enhance blue carbon ecosystems and carbon sequestration. Aquatic Conservation: Marine and Freshwater Ecosystems, 35(7), e70160. https://doi.org/10.1002/aqc.70160
TNC Authors
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Heidi K. Alleway
Senior Aquaculture Scientist
The Nature Conservancy
Email: heidi.alleway@tnc.org -
Rebecca R. Gentry
The Nature Conservancy -
Lindsey Smart
Adaptation and Resilience Scientist
The Nature Conservancy
Email: lindsey.smart@tnc.org -
Jonathan Mackay
The Nature Conservancy