Aquaculture development in Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Bosnia and Herzegovina has a very long and rich tradition in aquaculture. Important advantages that the country possesses for the development of aquaculture include abundant clean water, high-quality, educated and cheap labour, high capability of fish processing factories, and the high quality of its hatcheries. Thanks to these and other factors, Bosnia and Herzegovina has a great potential for increasing national aquaculture production. During the war period of 1991–1995, the majority of the fish farms were destroyed along with their entire infrastructure. After the war, the process of privatization started, leading to an increase in fish production. The privatization of the fish farms, which since 1995 were in the possession of the State, has broadened the possibilities for aquaculture development in the country, including the use of new technologies, the expansion of capacity and the production of high-quality feeds. The export of fish and fish products from Bosnia and Herzegovina to European Union markets as officially permitted by EU Decision 2008/156/EC is the most important success of Bosnia and Herzegovina’s agriculture sector in the post-war period. INTRODUCTION Bosnia and Herzegovina is located in the Western Balkans region and has a total surface area of 51 209.2 km2, of which land accounts for 51 197 km2 and sea accounts for 12.2 km2. Air distance by latitude and longitude is 314 km north to south (2°43'30'') and 309 km from east to west (3°53'41''). The national border is 1 538 km long, of which 774 km is land border, 751 km is river border and 13 km is sea border. The longest river is the Drina, being 346 km long, and the largest lake is Buško Blato, with an area of 55.8 km2, an elevation of 716.6 m above sea level and a maximum depth of 17.3 m. The first written data on organized fishing in Bosnia and Herzegovina dates back to the late nineteenth century. During that time, fishing was under the control of the Forestry Directorate and taxes were imposed on professional fishermen as a so-called “fishing fee” (e.g. in the nature park Hutovo Blato). The organized protection of water bodies and legal regulations were introduced by Decree in 1886. Founded in 1892, “Fischerei-Verein fur Bosnien-Herzegovina” was the first fishermen’s association in Strengthening aquaculture health management in Bosnia and Herzegovina 28 Bosnia and Herzegovina. The “Fishermen Association” was the first sport fishermen’s association, and was established in Sarajevo in 1906. The introduction of fish culture to Bosnia and Herzegovina is associated with the establishment of the fish farm “Vrelo Bosne” near Ilidža in 1894. A new hatchery, the largest and the most modern hatchery in the region at the time, was built in 1898 with a capacity of 600 000 pieces of fry. It played an essential role in the development of salmonid fish culture and associated stocking programmes. Development of cyprinid fish culture in the country began in 1902 when a Polish citizen, Viktor Burda, purchased 300 acres of barren land near Prijedor and 600 acres near Bosanska Gradiška from the Government and constructed fish farms producting 300–400 and 100–150 kg/acre, respectively (Hamzić, 2003). During the Yugoslavia Kingdom (1919–1941), development in the area of aquaculture in Bosnia and Herzegovina was in stagnation; however, during the period of the Federal Yugoslavia (1946–1991) significant development occurred. During 1946–1982, a new and more intensive model for the culture of fish and other aquatic organisms developed rapidly. A system using floating cages in lakes and reservoirs using high stocking densities and highly nutritious pelleted feeds was developed, leading to significantly higher production. During the same period, cyprinid fish species (grass carp, silver carp and bighead carp) were introduced and produced. At the same time, the production of salmonid species achieved full expansion. In 1952, the Institute for Fishery was established. It subsequently merged with the Sarajevo University Institute of Biology, which conducted extensive scientific activities and played an important role in the development of ichthyology and fisheries, in particular salmonid and cyprinid fish production, in Bosnia and Herzegovina. The Center for Fishery was established in 1959 as a part of the School for Scientific and Technological Cooperation of the Veterinary Faculty of the University of Sarajevo. This center had a huge impact in the field of disease diagnostics, prevention and management in controlled salmonid and cyprinid culture. In 1964, BiH had 13 salmonid farms with a total surface area of 38 000 m2. In 1982 salmonid farms produced 1 086 tonnes per year, and by 1990 the country had a production of approximately 3 000 tonnes of fish for consumption (Hamzić, 2003; Arthur and Reantaso, 2007). During the war of 1991–1995, the majority of fish farms were destroyed along with their entire infrastructure (Arthur and Reantaso, 2007; FAO, 2007). After the war, a process of privatization was started, leading to an increase in fish production. The privatization of fish farms, which in 1995 were in possession of the State, has broadened the opportunities for aquaculture development in Bosnia and Herzegovina through the adoption of new technologies, expansion of production capacity and the use of highquality feeds. According to the survey conducted by Hamzić (2003), during the period 1999–2003 there were production increases in the various subsectors as follows: • total production of fish and shells for consumption: 55 percent • production of salmonid eggs: 98 percent • production of salmonid fry: 69 percent • production of salmonids for consumption: 82 percent • production of cyprinid fry: 19 percent • production of cyprinids for consumption: 11 percent • production of marine fish and shells: 650 percent • production per employee: 37 percent • production capacities: 12 percent • employment: 12 percent 29 Aquaculture development in Bosnia and Herzegovina HYDROGRAPHY OF BOSNIA AND HERZEGOVINA The hydrological resources of Bosnia and Herzegovina belong to the river basins of the Black and Adriatic seas. Bosnia and Herzegovina has following aquatic resources: • 20 000 km of rivers and brooks (including the Sava, 355 km; Drina, 346 km; Bosna, 308 km, Vrbas, 240 km; and Una, 207 km); • 400 ha of lakes (including Buško Blato, Višegradsko, Jablaničko, and Modrac). Buško Blato Lake (shown in Figure 1) is the largest lake in Bosnia and Herzegovina with a surface area of 55.8 km2 and a water volume of 782 million m3. Currently fish production on the lake is not organized; and • 1 400 ha of seacoast (12.2 km long). DISTRIBUTION OF FARMING SYSTEMS AND THEIR CHARACTERISTICS Fish farms in BiH are generally distributed in three main regions. In northern Bosnia, there are salmonid and cyprinid farms in the Neretva and Una rivers and in the Vrbas River there are salmonid farms. Additionally, marine aquaculture has developed in the Adriatic Sea at Neum. According to data provided by the Center of Aquaculture of the Veterinary Faculty in Sarajevo, there are 30 registered fish farms in Bosnia and Herzegovina (i.e. “Martin Brod”, Martin Brod; “Klokot”, Bihać; “Tropic Ribarstvo-Ribnik”, Ribnik; “Tropic Ribarstvo-Bočac”, Crna Rijeka; “Tropic Ribarstvo-Krupa na Vrbasu”, Krupa na Vrbasu; “Tropic Ribarstvo-Jezero”, Jezero; “Ribogojilište” d.o.o., Bugojno; “Norfish”, Blagaj; “Norfish”, Salakovac; “Salmon d.o.o.”, Ljubuški; “Pastrmka”, Drežnica; “Bijela”, Salakovac; “Forele”, Salakovac; “Laks” d.o.o., Salakovac; “Drežanjka d.o.o.”, Drežnica; “Eko-Fish”, Jablanica; “Šanica”, Jablanica; “Prenj”, Jablanica; “Zeriko”, Drežnica; “Krupić”, Prozor; SPD “Kavezni uzgoj ribe”, Prozor; “Ljuta”, Konjic; PJ “Gunjani” Kreševo; “Salmon d.o.o.”, Salakovac; “Žunovnica”, “Hadžići; d.o.o.” “Ribamerc”, Krupa na Vrbasu; d.o.o. “Slapovi”, Krupa na Vrbasu; “Restoran Pećina”, Čelebići; “Butrex Ribarstvo”, Trebinje; “Jazine”, Trebinje). In addition, there are five registered cyprinid fish farms (i.e. doo “Ribarstvo”, Sijekovac; doo “Kušljić Commerce”, Sijekovac; AD “Saničani”, Prijedor; AD “Ribnjak Prnjavor”, Prnjavor; “Ribnjak Bardača”, Srbac) and two marine fish farms in Neum, Ancora. It is assumed that there are many of unregistered fish farms, mostly of small capacity. Photo of Lake Buško Blato Strengthening aquaculture health management in Bosnia and Herzegovina 30 Salmonid farms mainly use concrete tanks with optimal flow and high-quality water. Aeration has not been used, and a large number of these fish farms do not have filters for purification of used water. After the war, there was an expansion of cage culture in the rivers Neretva, Una and Vrbas. Today, with the help of new technology from Norway, cages with dimensions 10 x 10 x 10 m are in use in Salakovac Lake (previously their dimensions were 5 x 5 x 5 m). Cyprinid farms using earthen ponds have a long tradition in production. Unfortunately, there are no hatcheries for cyprinid species in Bosnia and Herzegovina, and as a result, fingerlings are imported from other countries, such as Croatia and Hungary. The quality and quantity of water is satisfactory, except during periods of extreme drought. Marine aquaculture is carried out in only two fish farms using cages located in the Adriatic Sea at Neum. Molluscs are cultivated in the traditional way. In Bosnia and Herzegovina there are two factories for fish processing, one located in Salakovac and the other in Banja Luka. They use modern technology, produce a wide range of products and have an annual capacity of approximately 3 000 tonnes. The contribution of fish farms to the production of fish and molluscs for consumption in BiH is shown in Figure 1 (Hamzić, 2003; Hamzić and Ecimovic, 2004). FISH AND MOLLUSCS OF BOSNIA AND HERZEGOVINA The ichthyofauna of the country comprises approximately 120 species. The most important fish and molluscan species used in the aquaculture sector in the country ar