Download Glossary - Association of Scottish Shellfish Growers

Code of Good Practice
October 2005
Glossary
Aquaculture
The rearing or culture of aquatic organisms, including fish, molluscs, crustaceans and aquatic plants. Culture
implies some form of intervention in the rearing process to enhance production beyond the natural capacity of
the environment such as regular stocking, feeding, protection from predators, etc. The organisms remain the
property of a natural or legal person throughout the rearing or culture stage, up to and including harvesting.
ASP
Amnesiac Shellfish Poisoning.
Beach Culture
The culture of molluscs intertidally.
Berm
A low wall generally of natural materials constructed in the intertidal zone to reduce wave action or prevent the
movement of oysters across the intertidal.
Biodiversity (biological diversity)
The variability amongst living organisms, including the variability within species, between species, and of
ecosystems.
Biofouling
Biological organisms such as algal and invertebrate species that adhere to gear causing fouling.
Biological Carrying Capacity
The maximum natural biological productivity of a body of water; if cultivated organisms (shellfish or other
species which take their food from their surroundings) exceed the carrying capacity of this water body, then the
biological productivity will be depleted and the natural ecosystem damaged.
Carrying Capacity
The potential maximum production a species or population can maintain in relation to available food resources
within an area.
Contaminants
Substances that, when added to the water column, may render the water harmful or unusable by others.
Cultch
A substrate that is introduced to provide a surface and encourage the settlement of mollusc larvae (spat).
Examples of items used include: old oyster shell, specially constructed PVC pipes, plastic discs and wooden
posts.
Depuration
Holding bivalve molluscs such as mussels in sterilised sea water under conditions that allow them to filter
normally to remove any bacteria accumulated in the gut; the sea water can be sterilised by ozone or ultra-violet
light although the latter is the most common method used.
DSP
Diarrhetic Shellfish Poisoning.
Ecosystem
A community of interdependent organisms, together with the environment they inhabit and with which they
interact; this complex, integrated unit exists in a fine balance, so that even small changes to one part of the
system can have knock-on effects on many other components of the system.
Hazard Analysis & Critical Control Points (HACCP)
Food safety hazard analysis system. HACCP involves the systematic assessment of all stages of a shellfish
grower’s operation, and the identification of stages that are critical to the safety of the product.
Association of Scottish Shellfish Growers
Appendix B, Page 1
Code of Good Practice
October 2005
Intertidal
That portion of the shoreline between the high water tidal mark and the low water mark.
Longline
Form of suspended (off-bottom) culture in which the flotation supporting shellfish culture equipment consists of
ropes suspended horizontally in the water column by floats.
New Species
Wild species being brought into cultivation for the first time.
NGO
Non-governmental organisations.
Non-native
A species that does not originate in Scotland and which has been introduced from other parts of the world by
humans, either deliberately or accidentally.
Polyculture
The deliberate cultivation of more than one species of aquatic organism in close proximity, where each of the
organisms in question has a distinct benefit to the commercial process.
Precautionary principle
The principle that all responsible parties should act prudently to avoid the possibility of irreversible
environmental damage in situations where the scientific evidence is inconclusive but the potential damage could
be significant.
PSP
Paralytic Shellfish Poisoning.
Relaying
The sowing out of juvenile shellfish, for example scallops, for on-growing and eventual harvesting.
Remote Setting
The process of settling hatchery reared oyster larvae at a site other than the hatchery (typically at a central or
grow-out site). Facilities typically consist of upland or floating tanks where cultch oyster shell is submerged in
water pumped directly from adjacent natural water bodies. The water is normally heated and a predetermined
and measured number of mature oyster larvae added into the tanks so that they disperse around and settle out
onto the cultch material. Air pumps in the bottom of the tanks help circulate the water for dispersion of the
larvae.
Riparian Rights
The major riparian right associated with waterfront property is the right to unimpeded access to and from that
property to deep water for the purposes of navigation. This right exists separate and apart from the public right
of navigation.
Several Order
An area of the seabed severed from the public right to fish, in order to conserve or enhance named shellfish
stocks.
Sustainable Development
Development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet
their own needs.
Visual Carrying Capacity
The degree to which a particular landscape or area is able to accommodate development or change without
significant effects on the character for which it is particularly valued by people or without causing an overall
change to its landscape character type; this capacity will vary according to the type and nature of the
development or change that is proposed.
Association of Scottish Shellfish Growers
Appendix B, Page 2