Abstract Aquaculture, including marine aquaculture (mariculture), is the fastest growing food production sector globally and is expected to play a key role in delivering future food security. A potential factor limiting growth of the aquaculture industry, however, is the maintenance of good water quality, on which all forms of aquaculture depend. This is particularly challenging in ‘open’ coastal and estuarine systems and requires engagement with a wide range of stakeholders that can influence water quality. We applied a semi-quantitative method (Q-method) to capture and evaluate perspectives across diverse stakeholders in order to address the overarching question: “How do stakeholders rank water quality issues and management options versus other issues and actions for ensuring the sustainability of shellfish mariculture in South West England?” Results from this regional case study were used to highlight key issues and knowledge gaps that have national and international relevance. Stakeholders were found to hold distinct perspectives (P1−3), but there was general consensus that good water quality is essential for sustainable aquaculture, and that there is a need for better understanding of spatial and temporal variations in land use throughout catchments to ensure effective water quality management. Stakeholder engagement highlighted the importance of managing anthropogenic and environmental (climatic) pressures on land and water through agri-environment and urban planning policy in order to ensure sustainable food production, including from mariculture.

中文翻译：

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利益相关者对可持续海水养殖的水质重要性和其他制约因素的看法

摘要 水产养殖，包括海水养殖（海产养殖），是全球增长最快的粮食生产部门，预计将在实现未来粮食安全方面发挥关键作用。然而，限制水产养殖业增长的一个潜在因素是保持良好的水质，所有形式的水产养殖都依赖于此。这在“开放”的沿海和河口系统中尤其具有挑战性，并且需要与可能影响水质的广泛利益相关者的接触。我们应用半定量方法（Q 方法）来捕捉和评估不同利益相关者的观点，以解决首要问题：“利益相关者如何对水质问题和管理选择与其他问题和行动进行排序，以确保英格兰西南部贝类海水养殖的可持续性？” 该区域案例研究的结果用于突出具有国家和国际相关性的关键问题和知识差距。发现利益相关者持有不同的观点（P1-3），但普遍认为良好的水质对于可持续水产养殖至关重要，需要更好地了解整个流域土地利用的时空变化以确保有效水质管理。