Salmon companies considering relocation of farm sites
Although no specific information about variations in water quality or fish behavior has been made available, following the last and most serious eruption yesterday of the Chaitén volcano, according to Carlos Odebret of SalmonChile, some salmon companies located near Chaitén (see 07.05.08 – Volcanic ash destroys Chaitén and Futaleufú) have begun soliciting relocation permits from the national fisheries authority Sernapesca. Ezequías Allende, general manager of Salmones Humboldt, a small company recently formed last year and with 20% of its production in the affected area states, “This is the first time a volcano eruption has occurred so close to [salmon] farm operations, so we [the salmon companies] don’t have situation parameters or know what measures must be taken. We are considering relocating our farms.” Sernapesca however, a governmental agency that must follow standard bureaucratic protocol, may not be able to facilitate such solicitations so easily. Also, considering the current limitations posed by the ISA protection program and the restrictions placed on fish transport throughout quarantine sections of neighboring Chiloé, relocation efforts may be as big a challenge as dealing with the volcanic ash. For video coverage of the Chaitén volcano eruption
