Pergamon Geoforum, Vol. 28, No. 34, pp. 313-328, 1997 0 1997 Elsevier Science Ltd Printed in Great Britain. All rights reserved OOM-7185/97 $17.00+0.00 PII: SOOM-7185(97)00013-4 Environment, Sustainability and Regulation in Commercial Aquaculture: The Case of Chilean Salmonid Production JONATHAN R. BARTON School of Development Studies, University of East Anglia, Norwich, NR4 7TJ, UK Abstract: Chilean salmon aquaculture has exhibited dynamic growth since its introduction on a commercial scale in the early 1980s (IFOP, 1994). The indicators of growth show no immediate signs of abating, despite lower prices, and Chilean production now ranks second only to Norway in international production. The industry’s efficiency and profitability depends primarily on two factors: optimal food utilisation to achieve a maximal rate of growth at a minimum cost and the control of mortality in the farmed fish population. The management of these factors has direct and indirect effects on the fresh water and marine environments of production sites. Many of these effects can be linked to the contamination of aquatic environments. The regulation of the industry to control these effects will determine its sustainability. This paper argues two points. The first point is that responsibility for the monitoring and regulation of the salmon aquaculture industry should lie with the state, especially in terms of environmental quality. The second point is the need to establish the degree to which intensive salmon aquaculture in Chile is sustainable at its current rate of expansion. In both cases, it is stressed that state regulation should be broader and more efficient than at present if the industry is to have a more sustainable future. 0 1997 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved Key words Chile, salmon, aquaculture, environment, sustainability, regulation The emergence of Chilean salmon aquaculture During the 1950s and 1960s commercial salmon aquaculture emerged for the first time in Japan and the USA. This was consolidated by the drive towards viable fish farming in the late 1970s which was a response to problems associated with capture fisheries, the recognition of the protein value of fish, increased use of farmed fish by restaurateurs for security of supply, and technological development (Monahan, *Tel., 01603-593685; Fax, 01603-451999; E-mail, j.r.barton @uea.ac.uk 1993; Coull, 1993a, 1993b). A turning point in the development process was the 1976 Food and Agricul- ture Organisation (FAO) conference in Kyoto which led to the establishment of regional technological and biological research centres aimed at stimulating commercial fish farming production; this initiative lasted until 1989 with finance from the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the FAO’s Aquaculture Development and Coordination Pro- gramme (ADCP) (Coull, 1993b; Konstapel and Noort, 1995). The outcome of the industry’s rapid evolution is that contemporary production is focused on intensive farming, utilising high densities of fish for stock management with high operating costs and high yields per unit volume. 313