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I painted this beautiful valley of Oman not just for it's scenic beauty

but I was truly impressed with the indomitable spirit of it's people.

Undeterred by the rugged terrain, the harsh weather & scarcity of

water, these farmers have managed to till the land.

In most cases where there is a will there is a way.

However,  the foremost issue that comes to my mind, 

that needs to be addressed right away--- as our population 

is soon going to hit the 7 billion mark is that of providing food. 

I feel that as our land has been farmed so far in spite of the above 

mentioned difficulties & by means of mechanised farming we have 

used it's full potential;  we now have to look towards our oceans 

that cover 3/4 of our planet, if we our to continue to feed the masses.

One may argue that fishing is an age-old tradition practised since the beginning 

of time, then why the need for sea-farming?

The principal  reason being that if like parasites we devour

the fish available to us, then the time will soon come when most 

of these fishes will become extinct.

Now these issues are being tackled by fisheries'owners to some extent, but should the

fishes  & other marine life be bred in their natural habitat -- e-g. by cordoning 

off certain areas of the ocean where regulated amount of marine life could 

only be removed periodically,  then the risk of extinction would not arise.

Also intensive breeding of certain favourable species in such enclosures

would also be possible, because certain types of marine life yield far more nutrients

as compared to others & the breeding of certain species which are  poisonous -- though important in the food chain

could be scaled down.

Also attention needs to be paid to the supply to the local markets as the trawlers in most 

countries are not equipped to adequately store a large quantity of their catch, therefore 

those countries that border the oceans should provide facilities either near the coast or near the

marine- enclosures to freeze the catch, so that they can be supplied even when  the weather 

conditions do not permit regular fishing or when it is not advisable to fish during the breeding 

season of the fish e.t.c.

However,  there is one major obstacle for the setting up of these enclosures in the oceans 

because it would make life easy for the predators of the marine life in the enclosures!

Should one prevent these predators from feasting on their regular prey, then the natural food- chain 

could be disturbed. Therefore, before setting up these farms one must study the flora &  fauna

of that particular area & make note of the food-chain I.e. make note of the ratio of each species 

with that of the rest. So that even when practising intense farming the scientists make sure that 

that ratio is maintained. 

Alternatively,  old abandoned ships could be utilised for serving the purpose of these enclosures. 

This would not only restrict the entry of the predators  but these vessels have also be known to 

form an eco-system & even form a man-made coral reef!

If the off-shore storage facilities mentioned above were coupled with food-processing & packaging factories, then these

perishable items could be handled & distributed in larger amounts. However, unless these factories did have access to adequate

power supply then it would not be feasible. The only form of power which is not only pollution free but is also quite cheap

because it requires very little maintenance after the initial installation costs & that of course is --Solar Power.

These measures would be extremely beneficial for countries such as Maldives & Holland whose coast sometimes lies below

sea level.

Where Solar power is not readily available wind mills may be used as in Holland or following Canada's example other renewable sources 

of energy can be used.

This in turn would reduce our dependence on fossil fuels & thus reduce the emission of green house gases. Thus, it is a truly win win situation!