Real-Life Decision Making -- Solution
You decide to remain within the normal fish stocking boundaries.
You choose to stick with the lower stocking rates. The numbers of higher
stocks look great in the books, but when you're dealing with a fragile
ecosystem, what the books say doesn't count. Overstocking the ponds could
have a serious effect on the quality or health of your stocks.
This is the decision fish farmer Jennie Koolstra would make. She says overstocking
can cause a number of problems for fish.
"Overstocking will affect the water quality," says Koolstra. "Fish depend
on oxygen -- if you overstock, you get too many fish taking too little oxygen."
Also, higher waste levels means there's more ammonia in the water: "That's
your number one killer of fish -- fish waste," she says.
"Decision making is very important, and a lot of it is at the spur of the
moment," Koolstra says. "For example, our system, if we start getting irrigation
water through, muddy water coming through, you have to decide immediately:
Do we need to shut this place down and switch it to well water? Should we
go with it and see if the fish all die? I mean, water flows, so within minutes
every fish in your facility could be compromised."