Using genetics to measure the environmental impact of salmon farming
Determining species diversity makes it possible to estimate the impact of human activity on marine ecosystems accurately. The environmental effects of salmon farming have been assessed, until now, by visually identifying the animals living in the marine sediment samples collected at specific distances from farming sites. A team led by Jan Pawlowski, professor at the Faculty of Science of the University of Geneva (UNIGE), Switzerland, analysed this type of sediment using a technique known as "DNA barcoding" that targets certain micro-organisms. Their research, which has been published in the Molecular Ecology Resources journal, reveals the potential of this new genomic tool for detecting environmental changes as accurately as with traditional methods – but more quickly and at lower cost.