Agriculture and Environment: Salmon

Environmental Impacts of Production: Poorly Run Hatcheries

Well-run hatcheries should not have environmental impacts. Unfortunately, not all hatcheries are well run.

In many parts of the world, hatcheries are allowed to dispose of waste without treatment.

This damages the environment not only by causing nutrient overloading, but also by introducing diseases into the marine or freshwater environment that can affect both wild salmon and salmon farming operations.

In Chile hatcheries were established in large freshwater lakes rather than in closed systems as in most other parts of the world. In Southern Chile, where most salmon are produced, 5 of 8 lakes are polluted, and the salmon aquaculture industry appears to be the main cause (Claude and Oporto 2000).



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