The meeting (Chair: Chris McKindsey) was held on 20–23 March 2012 at the Institute of Oceanology Polish Academy of Sciences, Sopot, Poland, and was attended by 10 participants from 5 countries. It had two objectives (1) to have a joint meeting with the WGMASC to collaborate with the WGMASC to discuss how to revitalize the issue of sustainability in aquaculture (ToR i), and (2) to work on other selected Terms of Reference. At the start of the meeting, a presentation on the SSGHIE`s view of the needs for revitalization of the EGs on aquaculture was given by Erik Olsen. Debate was then initiated on how to best address the perceived issues. This discussion con-tinued throughout the session and was concluded with 3 possible scenarios for man-agement structures: the merging of the WGEIM and WGMASC into a single group with an emphasis on sustainability in aquaculture, the formation of an EG on sus-tainability in bivalve (or invertebrate) culture and another on the sustainability of finfish culture, or keeping the two groups in their current form. The pros and cons of each option were highlighted but no decision was made as to which option was best suited to meet the needs of adequately addressing sustainability in aquaculture. This is likely greatly due to the fact that both groups have addressed this aspect exten-sively in past ToRs. Given the extensive time devoted to working on ToR h with the WGMASC and that many of the members were new to the WGEIM, limited time was available to address the other ToRs. The group thus decided to focus efforts on finish-ing 3 multi-year ToRs and addressing a further one that highlights emerging issues. It was decided by the group to complete those ToR addressed this year and sug-gested to drop or revise those ToR not being addressed. A more relevant list of ToR was developed by the group and it is planned that this list may also be updated based on the results of our analysis of country-specific interests and knowledge (see ToR h). a ) Five emerging mariculture issues were identified, including 1) the use of wellboats for bath treatment of sea lice chemotherapeutants, 2) standardiz-ing methodologies for monitoring benthic impacts and improving our un-derstanding of sensitive habitat responses to aquaculture induced stress, 3) Effect of fish cage culture on wild fish quality and behaviour, 4) Interac-tions between seaducks and bivalve culture, and 5) Issues relating to ocean ranching of invertebrates; b ) All human activities in the marine environment, including aquaculture, have some impact. Indices of sustainability of aquaculture activities must include both biological information and social values. Levels of what are deemed to be acceptable impacts are largely a function of societal values and are best considered within an Integrated Coastal Zone Management (ICZM) framework; c ) Fouling hazards and integrated pest management strategies - Postponed; d ) Integrated multi-trophic aquaculture (IMTA) systems typically aim to 1) decrease the impacts of fed mono-specific culture by co-culturing other ex-tractive species (bioremediation) and 2) to increase overall commercial production of all cultured species. Many studies are underway in temper-ate countries to determine the efficacy of IMTA operations. Remaining regulatory implications include defining what constitutes an “IMTA” site, the scales over which effects must be evident (e.g., lease-scale vs. coast-scale), and issues related to ranching of invertebrates on the seafloor; 2 | ICES WGEIM REPORT 2012 e ) Seed stock quality may be defined with respect to maximizing profits due to maximized growth, survival and quality and with respect to its envi-ronmental performance (food conversion, oxygen demand, production of nutrients and organic waste). Issues with respect to reproductive outputs have received little attention except with respect to maximizing growth rates. It is suggested that seed quality and environmental performance could be improved by increasing use of hatchery-produced seed, brood-stock selection, and genetic improvement; f ) Climate change and aquaculture issues – covered by WGMASC, Post-poned; g ) Finfish feed usage and constituents – Postponed; h ) The WGEIM collaborated with the WGMASC to address how to revitalize the issue of sustainability in aquaculture. A three-prong approach was suggested: i ) develop a list of country-specific priorities with respect to sustainability in aquaculture through the development of a table to be circulated to mem-ber nations to gauge their level of concern and knowledge of issues identi-fied by the Egs; ii ) a table of pros and cons of various management structures was devloped to guide the discussion as to the most logical way to address issues sur-rounding sustainability in aquaculture; discussion of the various options suggests that the creation of a single group would best address the issues surrounding sustainability in aquaculture (although it was recognized that this will create other issues); iii ) a note was drafted to send to member countries to solicit requests for sci-ence advice within the scope of knowledge of the EG(s) It is anticipated that requests coming directly from member countries will focus a portion of future ToRs for the EG(s), specifically with respect to the development of risk assessments for issues relating to the sustainability of aquaculture. It also antici-pated that some ToRs will remain member-driven to meet individual member’s needs. An initial meeting of the anticipated new EG will be held at the ASC in Bergen in September to establish ToRs for the new EG (based on current WGMASC and WGEIM ToRs and results from the survey of member country interests and needs). i ) Potential collaborations with other EGs – covered in 2010, Postponed. The next meeting was arranged for 18–22 March 2013, in Palavas, France.