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Assessing the sustainability of fish farming in Norway Name Institution of affiliation

Table of Contents 1. INTRODUCTION	2 1.0 Background information	2 1.1 Statement of the problem	8 1.2 Objective of the study	11 1.2.1 Specific objectives	11 1.3 Research questions	11 1.4 Research justification	11 1.5 scope of the study	13 1.6 Limitation of the study	13 2. LITERATURE REVIEW	14 2.1 Introduction	14 2.2 Practice of fish farming in Norway	14 2.3 Marketing an Trade of fish in Norway	16 2.4 Fish farming and carbon emissions in Norway	16 2.5 Theoretical framework	17 2.6 Conceptual Framework	18 3. RESEARCH METHODOLOGY	19 3.1 Introduction	19 3.2 Research design	19 3.3 Population. 20 3.4 Sampling frame	20 3.5 Sampling techniques	21 3.6 Methods of data collection	22 3.7 Pilot testing	22 3.7. Data analysis	23

1. INTRODUCTION 1.0 Background information Fish farming is known as the practice of raising fishes in a commercial model through ranks and fish ponds. Although in some cases fish farming is done for subsistence farming, it is also done for commercial purposes. Whichever the model that is used to rare fish, either aquaculture or aquaculture, farming of fish has become a common practice in the recent past. It should be noted that farming fish is often interpreted as an alternative way of keeping supplying fish either to human diet or for commercial purposes (Annon, 2013). As a result of the changing environment, fishes have been disappearing from common water bodies which has given rise to fish farming which has of evaluating whether the practice contributes carbon emissions to the air and a possible global warming. The global demand for fish has increased. In the recent past, there has been a sensitization to the people to shift from consuming red meat to white meat. The sensitization is carried out to ensure that people consume what is beneficial to their health (Annon, 2013 which has created demand for the production of more white meat, with an inclusion of fish. Other than the demand for white meat, there is also a realization that fish protein is more beneficial to people compared to other proteins contained in animal proteins. It is also worth noting that fish oil is highly demanded which explains the rise of fish farming. In this context, the ecosystems that support the life of fish have reduced compared to the demand of the product. To curb this demand, most people are shifting towards farming of fish to increase the supply and also make a fortune out of the shortage. Third, fish is an important aspect of the cuisine in the meal in different global culture. Being a cultural meal means that people hold it so dear to them to the extent of practicing fish farming. Equally, it creates a huge demand for fish that may not be met by the world fisheries or the number of fish that are produced form the global water bodies (Edelsten, 2011). Fish farming has therefore been embraced as an opportunity to produce fish to curb the ever-growing demand. The increased fish farming in Norway has raised questions as to whether the practice leads to carbon emissions in terms of its production, processing and disposal. As a result of increasing fish farming, mostly in Asia, world fisheries has been stagnatings because of the factors that are caused by the account that fishing only favors the species that are most favorable in the market (Edelsten, 2011). Secondly, due to changing human activities, water bodies have been contaminated to the extent that fish lives cannot be supported. As a result, fishing activities have declined. Fish farming has created a booming fish industries. In the US, it is a $60 billion industry that has created jobs and contributes to the country’s GDP which has made the country to set put structures to support fish farming because it is an important aspect of the country’s economy, which has made fish farming to be a very profitable venture that has been considered by many which indicates that fish from Norway has to undergo processing to reduce its perishability which may lead to carbon emissions to the environment. To practice fish farming, farmers usually set up a place to keep the fishes and supply them with the nutrients that they may need to grow up which is done to create an ecosystem that is similar to that of a lake, river, or any other water body that is friendly for fish. According to research, the most common types of fish that are produced through fish farming include carp, tilapia, catfish, and Salmon. Currently, China is the leading producer of farmed fish. Despite the ever-increasing fishing farming, some questions have been raised with regards to the health benefits of fish farming compared to world fish. According to research, fish farming produces fishes that are fed with wild fish which technically means that fish farming is hazardous to the existence of fish in the water bodies (Hicks, 2011). To put this into context, most of the fish that are kept in fish ponds and tanks are fed with other fish which means that carnivorous fishes are the most kept fish in the fish farms. The practice leads to an account whereby, fish farmers seek fish feeds from the lake and other water bodies. Fishing small fishes so that they can be fed to carnivores fishes in the fish farms pose a threat to the existence of wild fish. For instance, according to research, it takes five pounds of wild fish to keep one pound of farmed salmon fish. It should also be noted that fish farming is often subjected to GMO soy and cons (Blagrove, Hundloe & Ditton, 2016) which makes them hazardous to human lives because it means that farmed fishes are grown using GMO as their source of food, which finds themselves in human bodies. Secondly, there has been a rise of concerns that regards to fish farming emanating from the account that fish farms are often overcrowded by fish. Overcrowding leads to a point whereby fish are subjected to infestation by diseases. On the account that most farmers keep fish for sale, which would lead to making a profit, they use antibiotics to cure the infected fishes. Antibiotics are equally used to prevent diseases. Interesting enough, in the US, 80% of the antibiotics that are used in keeping fish end up in livestock through the produced livestock feeds. According to research, a pound of salmon fish that is produced through farming consumes more antibiotics in the keeping process compared to the amount used in keeping livestock (Longo, Clausen & Clark, 2015). Basically, it means that meat consumed in the US, mostly in North America has a contact of antibiotics that are used in fish farms. In a research aimed at comparing the nutritional value of the farmed fish compared to wild fish found out that there is a wide range of difference between the two. While farmed fish was found to have high-fat content and levels of PCBs, wild fish usually has low-fat content and other nutritional values that are beneficial to human health. It recommended that children and women should not feed on farmed salmon fish because it contains some harmful pollutants that were introduced in the process of farming compared to the wild fish that does not have these pollutants. Farming of fish disorients the food web in the environment. In this case, in the water bodies, there is an interconnected web of sea food which indicates that one creature depends on the other. For instance, mangrove trees and other sea plants depends on fish. Equally, fish depends on them for food and to support reproduction. Introducing fish farming, which is aimed at reducing the number of fishes in the water bodies are toxic to the water creatures food web. They may lead to death of some creatures and plants because of the missing link in the food web. The production of fish through fish farming has been assessed in terms of whether it is sustainable on account of its effects to the environment. Lastly, there has been compilation of reports that compared taste of the farmed fish and that of the wild fish. Wild fish was found to be tastier because of the ecosystem that it exists in. wild fish feed on algae, natural krill and zooplankton which affects the flavor positively to the extent of becoming tastier. On the other hand, farmed fish grow in the eco system that lacks algae and other sea food. On the contrary, they are fed with pellets that are similar to the ones consumed by pets. The state of the fish thus gets affected. This research was developed to find out whether fish farming may be sustainable following their context within which it exists. While people prefer eating fish as a solution to health problems, others are asking the question as to whether farmed fish is the solution to health issues that have been addressed. Equally, while the demand for fish has increased significantly over the last years due to the growing preference of fish as a source of oil and animal proteins, there are questions that are directed at the nutritional value of the farmed fish in line with the nutrients that it is aimed at supplying. Fish is produced, processed and its remains disposed. The research assessed the likelihood of this process contributing to carbon dioxide emissions in Norway. At one hand, there is a growing shift from red meat to white meat and also the preference of fish as the source of this white meat. On the other hand, there is a growing concern as to whether the answer to the need to consume white meat is farming fish. The two aspects of the equation poses a cardinal question as to whether fish farming can be sustained for over a long time owing to the environment that exists in. To examine the question of whether fish farming is sustainable or not, this research will narrow down to the practice in Norway by assessing context in which is undertaken. In this case, the practice of fish farming in Norway can be traced back to 1970, which was ventured in as an industry along the coastal area. The most common species of fish that is kept is the Salmon and the rainbow trout. On the account that fish farming has been embraced in the country, it had increased the production of fish to 600,000 tones as of 2003, this contributed to an industry that pumped to the economy $1350 million according to the statistics that were issued by the directorate of fisheries (Nash, 2010). Currently, the fish farming industry has grown to the extent of exceeding the subsistence aspect. The number of fish that are produced per year has grown immensely which has led to an account of considering soliciting for a market for these exports. As a country that exists within EU, it was easy to strike a deal to get a market to sell fish within the EU countries. In this context, it must be underscored that the EU countries have polices that favors movement of goods and services from one destination to another without most requirements. It must also be underscored that the formation of EU was triggered by the need to form a trading block among the member countries (Nash, 2010). The EU market therefore gets nine five percent of the fish that are exported from Norway. The increase of fish farming might be hazardous to the environment mostly on account of whether it emits carbon to the atmosphere. However, the industry has been facing a myriad of challenges. One of the challenges was to diversify fish production by increasing the species that are produced. In this case, Norway produces Salmon as the main species. However, the market has a demand for other species. Coping up with this dynamism in the market has proven to be a challenge in the country. The second major challenge that is faced in fish production in fish farms is a lack of raw materials to produce fish produces. It must be underscored that fish farming over relies on produced food for fish for the fishes to be produced. Lack of raw materials that are used in the production of these fishes has, therefore proven to be a challenge. Other than the challenges and benefits of fish farming in Norway, this research will focus on emission of carbon in relation to fish farming. According to research, 25% of sea carbon emissions emanates from the production of food which includes the belching by animals and the fuel that is burnt in the course of food production. For instance, fishing using motorboat burns fuel. Equally, using tractors for laughing releases carbon too. The consideration of carbon emissions by this research aims at comparing whether to keep fishes or to fish them from water bodies. It should be noted that harvesting fish from water bodies is a tedious process that burns fuel to emit carbon. On the other hand, harvesting of fish through fish farming is an exercise that does not require the use of machinery (J K Lasser Institute, 2010) which indicates that at no point, carbon would be emitted to the air which thus indicates that fish farming is a considerable practice within the equation of fish farming. Owing to the environment in which fish farming in Norway exists, there has been a question that has been popping up with regards to the sustainability of fish in the country. These in line with the challenges that exists and the booming EU market for the products (Nash 2010). There have been rising concerns into emissions of carbon to the environment that leads to the greenhouse effect which has occasioned the shift from the practices that emit carbon to the air to those that do not, in the practice to save the environment from greenhouse effects which validates the question as to whether fish farming in Norway has a future. 1.1 Statement of the problem The question of sustainability of fish farming in Norway has been raised based on the environment in which fish farming is currently operating. It is seemingly becoming clear that farmed fish and wild fish are two different species on account of the nutritional value, the ecosystem that they live in, and what they feed on. Norway has been battling with the challenge of escaped fish. In this regard, farmed species of Salmon fish has been escaping the domestic cages to rivers and other water bodies. Although one may look at it from a beneficial point of view, escaped salmon fish causes more harm than good in the wild fish ecosystem. First, it must be underscored that the two fishes exist in different ecosystems. Therefore, there are two different kind of species based on what they feed on and the nutritional value. Escaping domesticated fish thus, join their cousins in the water bodies and produce (OECD, 2013) which leads to a rise of a new fish breed in the water bodies that is supposedly the wild fish but with the qualities of a domesticated fish. Secondly, the challenge of escaped domesticated fish has been linked to the spread of fish diseases. In this regard, domesticated fish exists in an ecosystem that is overcrowded, leading to infections. Similarly, due to the over-reliance on antibiotics for either treatment or prevention of diseases, getting their ways to water bodies exposes them to a new environment. Farmed fish have weak immune system compared to wild fish. Therefore, escaping to the ecosystem of the wild fish exposes them to an environment that can easily lead to diseases. However, the challenge may not be realized from the viewpoint of the wild fish only. Instead, it should be looked at from the point of view of spreading these diseases to the wild fish ecosystem. In the long run, the issue of escaped farmed fishes may lead to the death of wild fish, therefore, affecting the population and thus declaring the supply (OECD, 2013). According to research, the issue of farmed escaped fish has been heavily linked to an account of a possible situation where the wild trout and salmon fish may be affected to the point of becoming distinct. Equally, fish farming in Norway has raised another challenge with regards to the rise of the population of lice. It is believed that farmed fishes go hand in hand with the rise in the population of lice in the country which has become a challenge because according to the set regulations, farmers should only address the challenge of the rising population of lice once they get to a certain level. However, over the recent past, the lice have become resistant to the insecticides that are used in their eradication (OECD, 2013). The most critical part of the rising population of lice is the account that they have proven to be difficult to deal with. The two points above paint a picture of fish farming in Norway that despite becoming so rampant and common, and despite the efforts to find a global market being made, the practice has been challenging the efforts to have a clean environment. However, the beneficial aspect of fish farming in Norway is the account that it leads to an account where the carbon that is emitted to the atmosphere due to fish farming has decreased. It must be underscored that fish farming is easy to harvest and also the account that a farmer does not need to use machinery that would emit carbon to the environment to undertake his or her harvesting (J K Lasser Insitute, 2010). To this extent, fish farming in Norway may be considered to be friendly to the environment which can be realized by the account that most practices globally are undertaken within the environment of reducing the amount of carbon that is released to the environment which is a practice that may favor fish farming to the extent of giving it the sustainability that is needed. Fish farming and the impacts that it causes to the environment affects the current generation and the upcoming one. In this regard, the current generation is affected by the extent that the population of wild fish that is believed to be more nutritious has been reducing. The second aspect of the population that is affected by the fish farming and its impacts is the account that the environment is being disoriented by the use of antibiotics and also the account of fishing from the water bodies so that fish in the farms can be fed which disorients the environment and mostly the sea ecosystem (Robbins, 2012). The future generation, on the other hand, is denied the opportunity to interact with the environment on account of the fish species declining. With the current trends in the fish industry, it means that the future generation may never have a chance to eat wild fish or even to interact with them. The sea ecosystem may equally become distinct, mostly, the one that depends on the existence of fish in the water bodies. However, the reduction of fish in the water bodies reduces, which gives rise to the practice of fish farming is not some extent beneficial to the environment, both to the current and future generation which is because the future generation will not interact with an atmosphere that is polluted in terms of carbon emission. Carbon emissions are reduced by fish farming on the account that harvesting is easy and does not require the use of machinery that ends up emitting carbon in the environment. Norwegian institute for nature research (Nina), the Directorate of Fisheries and the Norwegian Environment Agency have been working to regulate the practice of fish farming. The significant role that they have been working to achieve is to regulate fish farming to the extent that it does not threaten that natural ecosystem. The three bodies have been working to ensure that fish farming exists within the environment that friendly to the ecosystem and that the practice, however profitable it might seem to be, does not affect the lives of other creatures. However, efforts to regulate have proven not to work, mostly in the question of dealing with escaped salmon to the wild fish ecosystem (Gordon et al., 2014) The challenge arises on the account that fish farming has been very common practice in Norway and thus, some people do not abide by the regulations of fish keeping because of the profits that come with the practice. These efforts have been out as early as 1970 when fish farming is believed to have started in Norway. However, if the toxicity to the environment is the measure of sustainability, it should also be underscored that fish farming does not cause a greenhouse effect, therefore friendly to some extent to the coming generation. On this viewpoint, fish farming can prove to be sustainable because of a lack of an indication that it could lead to the spoiled environment to the extent of raising an alarm. 1.2 Objective of the study 1.2.1 Specific objectives The following objectives guided the study; •	To investigate the challenges that faces fish farming in Norway. •	To assess the amount of emissions by fish farming in Norway and determine if they pose any threat to the environment to extent of casing global warming. •	To assess some of the benefits that are accrued from the practice of fish farming. •	To collect the views of the Norwegian fisheries agencies on what they think is the future of fish farming. Does not have some sorts of sustainability? 1.3 Research questions •	Do you think the emissions of carbon to the environment by the practice if fish farming can raise an alarm? •	Are the benefits accrued from fish farming bigger enough to sustain the practice of fish farming? •	Are the agencies that deal with fish farming able to contain some of the challenges that are faced by the practice such as environmental impacts? 1.4 Research justification There are issues that have been raised been the recent past on the practice of fish farming. In this case, fish farming appears to be a practice that is being undertaken by the people blindly without considering the effects that it causes. In some cases, it has been referred to a ticking bomb owing to the negative effects that it causes both to human beings and to the environment. For instance, the directorate of fisheries in Norway has been releasing statements and also an aspect of trying to come up with policies that will ensure that fish farming s carried out within the clean environment and also ensure that it does not affect human bodies (Hønneland, 2012). The issue that has been raised in this case if an account of consumption of fish that is laced with chemicals that may end up causing health issues. The second issue that has been raised with regards to fish farming by the directorate of fisheries is the account farmed fish escaping to the ecosystem of wild fish. Much as people may interpret it as a good practice on the account that fish are coming out of one ecosystem to another, it leads to diseases and also cross breading therefore affecting the nutrients and the immune system of the fish that are found in the water bodies, otherwise known as wild fish (Thomas-Gale, 2013). Equally, farmed fish escaping from ponds and tanks has also been discussed because it leads to infection of the world fish, which has been described as a threat. Additionally, there are questions that have been posed with regards to the nutritional value of the farmed fish in Norway. In this case, unlike the wild fish that feeds on sea creatures, farmed fish are fed with pellets just; like dogs and cats that are kept in homes which affects the nutritional values to the extent of containing more fats compared to the wild fish. Due to overcrowding in fish ponds or tanks, most farmers often use antibiotics to cure and prevent the spread of diseases. These antibiotics have been linked with eroding the natural taste of the fish. All these issues that have been raised with source of living. Fish keeping in Norway is done for both subsistence and commercial purposes. It must be underscored that fish farming in Norway is a booming industry as a result of the open EU market (J K Lasser Insitute, 2010). Therefore, most people have been practicing it for exportation. That is the context in which fish farming in Norway should be underscored and considered within. All these issues have been posed with regards to fish farming in Norway, which is considered as a booming aquaculture. Therefore, in light of the issues that have been posed to the practice of fish keeping, questions about its sustainability have been equally posed. It should be noted that other than the human bodies, fish farming leads threatens wild fish by an account that farmers often feed farmed fish with pellets that are manufactured from raw materials which is comprised of wild fish. It therefore becomes a challenge to the environment and to the existence of the wild fish. Similarly, there is another question that has been posed by the environmental department of Norway with regards to the extent to which fish farming has disoriented the ecosystem of the wild fish. Due to the reduction of the wild fish, which are threatened by the existence of fish farming, some of the plants and creates that exist as a result of fish creatures being in the water are threatened (Aral & Dogu, 2011). For instance, the mangrove trees largely relies on fish reproduction activities for them to grow. Therefore, the context in which fish farming in Norway exists justifies this study that aims at reassessing the practice of fish farming in relation to its sustainability. Can the practice of fish farming withstand all the pressure that has risen in terms of the problems that it causes to the environment? 1.5 scope of the study The focus of this study is fish farming in Norway, which has been a very common practice in the country. The data that will be used in research will; be largely obtained from the directorate of fisheries in Norway. Equally, the farmers will be involved in the study to help the research to understand their general feeling in terms of the possible future of fish farming. Lastly, the study will broaden its scope from merely looking at the challenges against the benefits to obtaining the views of the experts in the fisheries department with regard to the foreseeable future of fish farming in Norway which will ensure that the research has an understanding of what fisheries have been facing and the likely future. 1.6 Limitation of the study The research anticipates facing challenges in terms of obtaining that data that is biased. In this regard, some of the farmers who will be involved in this research may give information to the researcher that is fashioned to provide a perception that fish farming is the practice that has a future in the country. Equally, the directorate of fisheries may also give wrong information to ensure that the department has been cleansed to appear as if it has been working to curb the challenges effectively. 2. LITERATURE REVIEW 2.1 Introduction This chapter look at the existing literature through posing a critique on what has been said, comparison of literature works about fish farming in Norway, theoretical review, what scholars think has led to the rise of fish farming in Norway as well as theoretical and conceptual framework. 2.2 Practice of fish farming in Norway In 2008, the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) worked on a report to assess the possible reasons that may have led to the rise of fish farming in Norway. According to FAO, the increase in fish farming in Norway was occasioned by the increasing demand for seafood from Norway by other countries such as the UK. Norway is said to have an ice clean water and a cool environment that favors keeping of fish by the farmers. As a result, the UK is believed to have a ready market for seafood from Norway. The ready market in the UK for the Norwegian fish creates a demand for the fish farmers in Norway to practice more fish farming (FAO, 2018). Another possible reason that was cited by FAO in their report on why fish farming in Norway is common and rampant is the geographical features of the country. The country has a large area but with less population which is because of the icy environment that is found to be too cold for human existence. Therefore, despite the fact that it is a large area, Norway only has 5 million people (OECD, 2012). The cold weather and environment despite not being friendly for human existence, it is friendly for fish farming and fish breading. The notion that best fifth comes from Norway makes Norwegians practice more fish farming in a bid to meet the global market for fish. According to FAO, the UK is the leading market for Norwegian fish because of the perception that the environment in the country is best suited for fish farming. For instance, in 2018, Norway exported about 2.6 tons of 70 different types of fish to more than 140 territories across the globe. Among the 206 tones, UK imported most of this fish. For instance, in 2017, the UK imported more than 130,000 of Norwegian fish (FAO, 2018 which paints a picture of the most sought after product globally with the UK leading in terms of preference of the Norway fish. When the demand is high, the farmers are tempted to venture into fish farming as a way of meeting the global market. Equally, as an attempt to ensure that fish supply in Norway is sustained the Norwegian government has formulated policies that are geared towards ensuring responsible production of fishing. The policy is aimed at curbing overfishing by penalizing those found culpable. However, with the policy about overfishing in place and the need to sustain the global market for the Norwegian fish, there is a window to practice fish farming as a way of meeting the demands of the market about the production of fish (FAO, 2018) which opened a platform that encourages farmers to practice fish farming as an economic activity. The report by FAO further attempted to look at the issue of sustainability of fish farming in Norway which was looked at as an evaluation of how fish farming in Norway has been carried out and what the fish in the farms feed on without interfering with the existence of wild fish. The findings of this research that most of the fish farms in Norway are sustained by Fish offcuts. By this, it means that fish farming in Norway does not rely on harvesting wild fish as food for farmed fish. Instead, the country feeds farmed fish with the fish offcuts that are normally wasted. Therefore, there is an aspect of recycling in terms of how the government has formulated policies with regards to fish farming (FAO, 2018). 2.3 Marketing an Trade of fish in Norway (Tonks, 2013) On the other hand, attempted to examine the exiting market and the trade that involves fish from Norway. In his view, 95% of Norwegian fish exports are channeled towards the EU market. He further stated that the EU market, mostly Demark and France, are the largest importers of the Norwegian fish which was, however, a negation of the FAO report that indicated that the UK is the largest importer of the Norwegian fish. However, in his view, he expanded his scope of assessment and found out that other than the EU, the Norwegian market is slowly finding its ways to East European countries. Other countries that are preferring the Norwegian fish include Japan and Russia, which according to him, the unique features of the Norwegian fish makes it a reference to the Japanese and the Russians (FAO, 2018). The unique features are as a result of the cool environment in which the Norwegian fish grows in. 2.4 Fish farming and carbon emissions in Norway According to (FAO, 2018) fish farming in Norway exists in an environment that is better in terms of conserving the environment. In this case, as a result of the concerns from the environmental department that fish harvesting was normally done using motorboats thus releasing carbon to the atmosphere, fish farming was drummed up as the solution to the need to reduce carbon emissions in the country. Normally, harvesting farmed fish is done manually without the need to have machines that would have otherwise emitted carbon to the environment. In this regard, FAO looked at the practice of fish farming with a lens of whether it can lead to air poisoning by emitting carbon or not. Within this viewpoint, thus, fish farming is an activity that does not lead to carbon emission and therefore may not cause greenhouse effects which should be understood within the context that harvesting farmed fish is normally an exercise that is done manually or using improvised or homemade equipment that does not emit carbon, therefore not causing global warming (FAO 2018)

2.5 Theoretical framework To underscore the contribution of fish farming in Norway to the economy, it is critical first to understand the theory of demand and supply, which is seemingly the framework within which Norway operates in. Basically, the law of demand and supply explains the interaction between the buyer and the seller. It defines the relationship that exists between the two entities. According to (Schwager, 2017), demand and supply are inversely related. In this case, a rise of one will lead to a subsequent decline of the other which in other words, means that if the farmers and Norway produce so much fish, the market will be flooded with the fish to the extent of increasing the supply. As a result of this, the demand for the product will reduce. Equally, if the global market demands the Norwegian fish so much, it would affect the demand. Demand and supply theory can be used to assess the situation that surrounds fish farming in Norway. Currently, the demand for the Norwegian fish is so much to the extent that the farmers are venturing to fish farming in a bid to meet the demand. However, the demand is seemingly more than the farmers can supply. (Delgado, 2003) on the other hand, appears to agree with the use of the theory of demand and supply in assessing the practice of fish farming in Norway. According to him, the high rate of farmers and other people venturing into fish farming in Norway was as a result of high demand. Normally, when the demand is high, the supply is low, and the price is high (Schwager, 2017). Therefore, the increase in demand increases the cost of the commodity which gives a connotation that the Norwegian farmers have been venturing to fish farming as a way of earning from the high prices of fish in the global market. Farming is done as a model of business. Therefore, people tend to venture into the model of business that is more profitable than others (IBC Inc, 2013). On the account that Norwegian fish is the most sought after in the market, it increases the price of the fish and this a connotation that it is a profitable venture which is an attempt to explain the reasons that could have given rise to a high number of people practicing fishing in Norway. 2.6 Conceptual Framework Fish farming in Norway should be underscored within the framework of the advantages and the benefits that are accrued from the practice. However, it should be underscored that the Norwegian department of fisheries is charged with the responsibility of regulating the fish farming to ensure that the practice corresponds with the policies that are set by the Norwegian government in relation to environmental conservation and also to ensure that fish is a species that will not become extinct for the future generation. These indicate that the directorate of fisheries in Norway is the custodian of fish farming and fishing activities. To underscore the question of whether fish farming in Norway is sustainable or not, some variables will be needed to undertake the research. One of the variables that would be needed in this research is the number of fish farmers in Norway and how the number has behaved over the last years. For instance, to underscore the question of whether fish farming is sustainable or not trend may be looked at regarding the number of people who have ventured to fish farming over a period of time. While analyzing the number of fish farmers, one may also look at the number of new entrants into fish farming and assess the trend which will give an indication of fish farming and the perception of farmers with regards to sustainability. Secondly, through qualitative research, I would assess the feeling of the fisheries experts and how they think fish farming activities will be the next few years. I would seek to understand the question of sustainability within the framework of the environment that they work in and the trends that they have observed which will give an indication of the overall feeling of fish farming in Norway. Logically, the directorate of fishing in Norway will give a direction on the future of Fish farming which is because he or she is the custodian of the data that comprises fishing and fish farming activities in Norway. Having their insights about the future of fish farming in Norway will be a critical aspect of this research (Hønneland, 2012). It should also be noted that as a key contributor to the Norwegian economy, there is research that has been done with regards to the benefits and challenges that affects the industry. Having their qualitative assessment in terms of opinions would be helpful to his research. 3. RESEARCH METHODOLOGY 3.1 Introduction The aim of this chapter is deliver information that concerns the research methods that were applied in this research. This section contains, research design, population of the study, collection of data, data analysis, pilot testing, sample, sampling techniques and the instruments that were used in data collection. 3.2 Research design Research design is defined as a model that is used in research to collect the data of the research for the purposes of obtaining the desired information from the population of the study. The design that was used in this research is descriptive research. Descriptive research is described as an approach that is used to describe the situation of the research by describing the qualitative aspects of the research (Gliner et al., 2013). The reason why I chose to use a descriptive research design is that it is associated with the stability of the environmental design I a defined research study. Through the descriptive approach, the data collected and the results that are attained from the research are accurate, valid and reliable as it seals the loopholes of making errors in the process of collecting, collating and analyzing the data. Through the use of the descriptive approach, this study was able to obtain and assess whether fish farming in Norway is sustainable or not. 3.3 Population. The research is based on fishing farmers in Norway who are the actual population in this research. Additionally, the research was expanded to accommodate fisheries experts in the department of the directorate of fisheries in Norway. They were included in the research because they are in a position to assess the trends that have been obtained with regards to fish farming in Norway and give an honest opinion in what they think with regards to the future of fish farming. The population will specifically be narrowed down in the habitable areas of Norway where fish farming is mostly practiced. Official from the directorate of fisheries will thus be picked to represent that viewed of the department with regards to the future of fish farming. Equally, the study picked fish farmers in Norway on the account that they are at a better position to give an account if what they think is affecting fish farming and how they foresee the industry in the future. These farmers are chosen as the primary responders to the research because the research is about what they do in their daily activities and what they consider doing for a living, which is keeping fish. Lastly, for a complete overview of what fish farming in Norway is about, the study expanded to some extent to include fish traders and suppliers which is the population that deals with fish trade. The logic behind their inclusion to have a complete view of what they think fish farming has achieved in the recent past and what they anticipate in the future. In this case, the research chose fish traders which is to have a complete view of all the stakeholders in the fish farming industry with regards to how they see the practice in the future. 3.4 Methods of data collection This study used the data that will be generated by the openLCA software which means that the researcher did not collect data from the respondents through the use of questionnaires as it is common. Rather, the use of the openLCA software, the researcher generated the data that he needed in this research regarding fish farming in Norway, which consists farmers, fisheries officials and fish traders in the Norwegian market. The openLCA software is normally the world leading software in terms of performance and assessment of open life. Mostly, the software is used for reliable and fast calculation regarding the sustainability of a system or a process. Basically, it is used to assess the sustainability of a process or a system. While using it, researcher benefits because they acquire details analysis of the results and calculations. It also identifies the drivers of a specific lifecycle that is used in the research. 3.7 Pilot testing Piloting refers to testing the questionnaire instrument on a small scale before the study is carried out. The pilot group can range from 25 to 100 issues provisional on the technique to be verified but it doesn’t need to be statistically. The piloting was conducted to check the questionnaires content, structure and sequence. 3.8 Testing reliability and validity Validity is the extent to which an assessment was dealing with what it purports to. To develop validity, the study uncovered the tools of the study to authorities in research for a verdict. The study steered a pilot survey study whereby unsuitable questionnaires item were rejected, restated, and or combined. Reliability, On the other hand, refers to how consistently an instrument measures something. Reliability of a study is a measure of how comparable the outcomes of the study would be if another researcher conducted a similar study. The result of the questionnaire to be used as stated above may differ slightly subject to the responders. Aspects like time, the respondent’s interest in the study, and their readiness to give discernment information, might affect the respondent’s answers (Montello & Sutton, 2012). When an instrument measures a variable accurately and obtains the same results over a while, then it is reliable. The questionnaires in this study measured the variables accurately and obtained the same results during the pretest and actual study. 3.7. Data analysis Reasons that processing, analyzing and presentation of data collected has to be done in accordance with the frameworks put down for the perseverance at the time of emerging the investigation strategy. In analyzing the data, it comprises transforming of data into expressive information for conclusion constructing. It involves editing, error correction, modification of error, and lastly placing together or combining information collected. The collected data was analyzed quantitatively. Descriptive and inferential statistics were done openLCA software (Tomlinson & Woodward, 2013). Through the software, the researcher was in a position to have accurate result that were displayed timely and therefore able to complete the research project in the given time. The software was also of great help to the researcher because it saved tike to print questionnaires and distribute them to the research population because the software was used to generate and analyses the results. It was thus a simple to undertake the whole process of data collection and identification. Equally, through the software, the researcher identified the true position of whether the practice of fish farming in Norway is sustainable or not based on the underlying circumstances within which it exists in. lastly, the software passed a raft of recommendations to the fishing and fisheries agencies on the possible ways of ensuring that fish farming can be sustained.

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