The social licence of salmon aquaculture in Tasmania: Fulfilling the social bargain

Abstract

Salmon aquaculture is one of a number of industries in Tasmania that can benefit from new technologies to reduce the local ecological and community amenity impacts of its coastal operations. This may assist the industry in retaining its social licence to operate (SLO), which is currently in question, so that it can continue generating benefits for local livelihoods. We used Q-methodology to gain empirical insight into aquaculture stakeholder perspectives on the role that SLO plays in maintaining the industry’s legitimacy. Results revealed four factors, all of which saw genuine engagement with strategies to retain SLO as being fundamental to the industry’s future. Whilst three factors prioritised the economic and employment benefits of the industry as playing an important role in this—as part of a social bargain with the community—all four factors believed that the continued legitimacy of the industry requires broader civil society consent. One factor considered the industry as being under pressure, but nevertheless felt a SLO could be re-established if the industry followed certain steps to secure it. Our research demonstrates that salmon aquaculture would do well to continue to actively seek SLO, achievement of which will maximise total net social benefit and point to pathways that begin to incorporate the nature-positive and people-positive agendas. It should also consider engagement with both communities of place and communities of practice as it explores opportunities in the blue economy and recognise that disclosure and transparency will assist in demonstrating procedural fairness.