Water Quality Analysis in Aquaculture

Introduction:
• Water quality for aquaculturists refers to the quality of water that enables
successful propagation of the desired organisms.
• Good initial conditions for aquaculture can be assured by selecting a site
with suitable soils and high quality of water supply. An adequate
environment must then be maintained over the culture period so that
animals will survive and grow rapidly.
• Growth and survival, which together determine the ultimate yield, are
influenced by a number of ecological parameters and managerial
practices. Proper water quality is essential for maintaining health aquatic
animals.

WATER QUALITY PARAMETERS:

➢
Temperature
➢
PH
➢
Salinity
➢
Ammonia
➢
Nitrite
➢
Nitrate
➢
T. Alkalinity
➢
T. Hardness
➢
Iron
➢
Dissolved oxygen
➢
H2S

Temperature:
• Aquaculture organisms are cold-blooded animals. They can modify their
body temperature to the environment in normal condition, unlike the
warm-blooded animals, which can react to maintain the optimum body
temperature.
• Based on the environmental factors such as winter, summer, spring
seasons the temperature will be changed.
• High temperature (above 300 C) affects the aquatic animals such as stress
but low temperature causes the animal activity and feeding will be slow.
During day time the temperature will be high in aquatic pond system
because the exposition of sunlight. Afternoon the temperature will be
cause thermal stratification. Hence the heat is released slowly from the
 pond surface. Surface of the water will be warm condition and bottom of
pond water will be cooling condition. Thermal stratification blocks the
dissolved oxygen in pond system.
• Low temperature accumulate long time can cause H2S production from
the sediment. It is more toxic for aquatic animals.

Effect of temperature fluctuation:

• Animal’s activity slow
• Animals don’t take feed
• Insufficient of dissolved oxygen

pH:
• pH is the negative logarithms of hydrogen iron concentration. pH refers to
potential of hydrogen iron concentration. It is the most important factor
in aquatic systems.

• Biological activity usually has a greater effect on PH in aquaculture ponds

than in most natural waters.

• During daylight, aquatic plants remove carbon dioxide from water for use
in photosynthesis. Both plants and animals continually release carbon
dioxide into the water by respiration at night. During the night, carbon
dioxide accumulates and pH declines.

• High rates of photosynthesis which cause the pH to increase rapidly.

Effects of PH fluctuation:
✓ Increases ammonia toxicity
✓ Stressful or lethal

Salinity:
• Salinity refers to the concentrations of all ions in water.
• The major ions contributing to salinity are calcium, magnesium, sodium,
potassium, bicarbonate, chloride and sulfate.
• Salinity has been measured Parts per million (ppt).
• Pond water salinity changes during period of high precipitation or
evaporation.

• In climate with pronounced wet and dry seasons the change can be
significant.
Ammonia, Nitrite and Nitrate:
• Ammonia produced during protein catabolism by the cultured aquatic
species and bacterial decomposition of organic matter.
• The ammonia exhibit in two forms they are ionized (NH4+) and unionized
(NH3+).
• Unionized is the toxic for fish and other aquaculture animals.
• Nitrite is a toxic compound produced from ammonia during the first
step of nitrification by ammonia oxidizing bacteria.
• Nitrate is the end product of nitrification and used as the fertilizers in
pond system to stimulate phytoplankton growth. It is not harmful for
aquatic animals

Effects of ammonia fluctuation:

• Reduced growth
• Poor feed
• Reduced disease resistance

Total alkalinity:
• Total alkalinity is the sum of titratable bases in water.
• In most water, bicarbonate (HCO3-) and carbonate (CO32-) are the
predominant bases.
• Total alkalinity is expressed as equivalent calcium carbonate (mg/L as
CaCo3).
• The alkalinity of pond water is determined by the quality of the water
supply and nature of pond bottom soils

Total hardness:
• Total hardness is the sum of the concentration of calcium (Ca3+) and
magnesium (Mg2+) in water, expressed as mg/L equivalent CaCo3.

• Calcium and magnesium are essential nutrients for aquatic plants and
animals. It is required for animal growth and nutritional requirements
• Crustaceans have a highly mineralized exoskeleton and require relatively
large amount of calcium and magnesium to replace the minerals lost
during molting.
• Ponds with low-alkalinity water usually have low calcium and magnesium
concentrations, and when liming materials are applied to remedy this
problem, hardness also increases.
• Some of the limestone will dissolved over time and hardness will increase.
Iron:
• Iron is an essential element for bacteria, plants, and animals. Many
enzymes important in energy transformations contain iron.
• Iron forms the center of the hemoglobin molecule important in oxygen
transport in the blood of vertebrate and some invertebrate animals.
• Iron also plays an important role in photosynthesis by plants.
• If water containing a high concentration of ferrous iron is used in
intensive
culture tanks or in hatcheries, the formation of iron hydroxide can be
problematic.

• Dissolved oxygen in the water is obtained through diffusion from air into
water.
• The availability of dissolved oxygen frequently limits the activities and
growth of aquatic animals.
• Biological processes tend to dominate the dissolved oxygen budget of
aquaculture ponds.

Hydrogen sulfide:
• Hydrogen sulfide (H2S) is a water soluble gas that smells like rotten eggs.
• Hydrogen sulfide is produced in pond bottom soils under anaerobic
conditions with sulphate reducing microorganisms and is extremely toxic
to aquatic animal.
• Formation of sulfide in pond can be reduced by aeration and circulation of
water to minimize anaerobic zones in the pond bottom.
• Water exchange may also be helpful by diluting sulfide containing water
in the pond and reducing the accumulation of organic matter on the
bottom.
Optimum Water Quality Parameters in Fish and Shrimp aquaculture

Sl. No Parameters Shrimp Fish

1. PH 7.5-8.5 7.5-8.5

2. Ammonia 0-0.001 0.0125

3. Nitrite <0.01 <0.2

4. Nitrate <5.0 0.0-3.0 ppm

5. Salinity 10-30 ppt 10-25 ppt

6. Dissolved oxygen >5ppm >5ppm

7. Temperature 25-30˚C 28-33˚C

8. Total alkalinity 10-400 ppm 10-400 ppm

9. Total hardness 10-400 ppm 10-400 ppm

10. H2S 0.01-0.02ppm 0.002 ppm

 Reasons for parameters fluctuation and remedies

S. Parameters Reasons for Fluctuation Remedies

No

1 Dissolved Overstocking and excessive feeding Proper feed management.

oxygen rate. Excessive algal blooms and high Proper aeration.
respiration. BOD increases due to
bacterial decomposition of algae.

2. Temperature Turnover of stratified pond system. Water topping up

Affect shrimp metabolism, stress, low Better aeration.
feed intake.

3. PH Increase due to warm weather. Add lime stone.

Decreased during night due to To reduce PH go for
respiration of planktons and increased water exchange.
CO2 levels.
4. Total High temperature and high PH lead to Maintain proper algal
ammonia increase toxic Ammonia-cause gill blooms.
nitrogen damage. Excessive feeding, high water Decrease feeding.
temperature, high pH and low algal
blooms.
5. Total Affects primary productivity and Prefer dolomite, Which
alkalinity water pH increase alkalinity water
PH & enhances the
availability of nutrients
for phytoplankton
growth.
6. Salinity High/low temperature Water exchange or
Heavy rainfall. topping up with ground
water with suitable
salinity.
7. H2S By product of breaking down of Sludge removal.
organic matter under anaerobic Proper drying and tilling.
conditions.
Decreased water PH.
Increase in temperature.