Sustainably sourced natural decorations vs. fake

[Sierra40]

Hi all,

A few weeks ago I went to a craft show and found the world of Opae Ula shrimps. I feel instantly in love with these beautiful little underworld landscapes that are alive with these delicate little creatures. I'm extremely avid gardener and enjoy making beautiful landscapes on a large scale as well. As soon as I purchased a tank I went home and educated myself on how to keep these guys healthy and happy.

I added to the tank I purchased, some calcium carbonate coral and some natural lava rock. The shrimp are all nicely active and are in some nice indirect sun. I decided that I wanted to make two more tanks and have been setting them up to cycle. Today I ordered some algae and snails from Supershrimp.

So I have a strong sense of aesthetics and am trying to create tanks that are both beautiful as well as very healthy for the shrimp. I love the natural sea fans, coral and shells but have no idea whether buying them is negatively impacting coral reefs which I know are generally in danger. Same for beautiful shells and coral...is there such as thing as ethical sources? Would love to know whether beautiful shells, fan coral, and calcium carbonate coral are in such abundance such that I need not worry about buying them?

I also have a little collection of rocks that I've collected from beeches in Cambria, CA. Those beeches have really beautiful colorful rocks that wash up. I just don't know which rocks might leech off too many minerals and which won't. Any way to tell?

I understand that the only plants that will truly thrive in brackish water are the ones sold on Supershrimp. Check. I like to keep fake things to a minimum both because some of them look truly fake to me and, unless they are specifically made for aquariums can't be guaranteed to be leach paint, chemicals, whatever. If anyone has found some really realistic fake and safe decorations I would love to know about them. Or any other favorite decorations that are thinking a little outside the box but add some interesting color or texture? For instance, the setup I bought came with a silk orchid which is actually very realistic looking. I'm hoping it's safe for the long run.

I've attached images of the two tanks I'm cycling and the one I bought and added too. (Also, I am going to remove the sandblasted and dried Manzanita from the first one and change the water...while I love how it looks, it sounds like there really isn't such thing as a safe wood).

Thanks in advance to the wisdom of this group!

[Mustafa]

Hi, and welcome to the forum! Seems like you mention some pictures but didn't attach any. As for decorations...lava rocks are not "sustainable" per se, but there is plenty of it and it's not like live corals that need to be killed to get their skeletons as decoration. As for plastic....most plastic is pretty inert, so should be ok. Same with most rocks...you just have to rinse the rock well, possibly soak for a few days to make sure that orgnic stuff stuck in crevices comes out or leaches out.