Abstract
Norway, the world's leader in the production and export of farmed Atlantic salmon, recently established a new management regime with a view to promoting substantial long-term growth in the industry. The government stated plainly, however, that the industry would have to be environmentally sustainable. The determination would be made through the use of indicators, but only one indicator would go into effect as the new regime was instituted: the amount of salmon lice (Lepeophtheirus salmonis) on wild salmon. This paper asks why this one, lone variable was selected. Using policy documents, the draft white paper outlining the new management plan sent out for comment by the government and the responses made by key stakeholders to the draft plan, this paper argues that the selection of this one indicator was overdetermined. Many factors contributed to the selection, including the government's fundamental decision to expand production, the momentum of Norwegian policy development, how the draft white paper defined and discussed environmental sustainability, the criteria established for acceptable indicators and the specifics of the proposed management plan. These had a political effect: For these reasons and more, no solid block of stakeholders emerged to press unambiguously for additional indicators at the start of the scheme, merited or not. This study also demonstrates the difficulties presented by a public debate on a management plan such as this.
Highlights
Norway, the world’s leader in the production and export of farmed Atlantic salmon, recently established a new management regime with a view to promoting substantial long-term growth in the industry
The draft white paper outlining the new management plan sent out for comment by the government and the responses made by key stakeholders to the draft plan, this paper argues that the selection of this one indicator was overdetermined
The farming of Atlantic salmon may affect the environment in many ways along its life-cycle, and, while all of these should be included in a complete assessment of its environmental impacts, our focus here is limited to potential impacts of open-cage farming in marine waters – which is the focus of the draft white paper (DWP) and subsequent discussions
Summary
The world’s leader in the production and export of farmed Atlantic salmon, recently established a new management regime with a view to promoting substantial long-term growth in the industry. Marine Policy 117 (2020) 103925 arguing that the selection is rooted in previous policy, practical issues and politics, the lack of unified pressure beyond the salmon aquaculture industry to include other indicators at the start of the new scheme It looks at how the government framed its policy and defined “environmental sustainability” in the draft white paper (DWP) that outlined the proposal for the new management plan that was sent out for public comment. The criteria set by the government made it difficult to select an indicator within the framework of the production-area based management program For these reasons and more, no solid block of stakeholders emerged to press unambiguously for additional indicators at the start of the scheme, merited or not. This study demonstrates the diffi culties presented by a public debate on a management plan such as this: the bar for meaningful participation is fairly high, requiring a sophisti cated understanding of the science and policy history in addition to the politics of the issue
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