Socioecology of farmed salmon escapes: 'Commons' and de-privatization of escaped salmon for better management of a potentially invasive species

Abstract

Aquaculture is increasingly important in a growing and hungry world. However, it is also associated with several socio-ecological problems such as non-native fish escaping from aquaculture. A particular issue in Chile is that escaped fish remain the property of the aquaculture operation, resulting in socio-ecological conflict. This article analyzes the opinions of artisanal fishermen from various locations across the Seno de Reloncaví in the Los Lagos region of Chile regarding salmonid escape events. To this end, we collected approaches and governance proposals about salmon escapes raised by fishers, allowing for a debate on the legal property status of escaped salmonids and the limits that this situation represents for better socio-environmental escape management. Empirically, the work is based on data gathering done between June 2019 and February 2020, immediately after a well-publicized and large-scale escape event (∼700,000 fish) from an aquaculture facility. Based on the case, we propose some elements for better socio-ecological governance of escapes from the theory of common and common-use resources.