Since 2018, the Chilean government, through its economic development agency CORFO, has provided funding for two significant projects aimed at developing the technology required to enable Offshore Aquaculture. One of these projects, led by the company EcoSea Farming in collaboration with Universidad Andres Bello, has conducted a review of the existing legal framework to assess whether modifications are necessary to permit new aquaculture licenses in the Territorial Sea (TS), Contiguous Zone (CZ), and the Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) in Chile’s ocean.
The current legal framework in Chile does not provide a specific definition of Offshore Aquaculture. However, various concepts have been proposed to describe the conditions under which this activity could take place. The General Fisheries and Aquaculture Law (LGPA), also known as Law No. 18,892, governs aquaculture within its Title VI "Aquaculture." It establishes the legal provisions for the development of aquaculture activities, including matters concerning concession titles issued for the practice of this activity on national public-use properties.
Figure 1 illustrates the process of acquiring an aquaculture concession in Chile, which primarily involves four institutions. The ultimate granting authority resides in the Undersecretary of Armed Forces (UAF). The UAF’s jurisdiction is confined to the Territorial Sea (TS). Additionally, Executive Resolution No. 7181, dated August 10, 2015, designates five-mile sea bands for artisanal fishing purposes. Currently, all aquaculture concessions are situated within the first nautical mile, although the UAF has the discretion to allocate concessions within five nautical miles. To mitigate the impact on artisanal fishing, it will be advantageous to allocate concessions beyond the initial five-mile zone. Therefore, it is recommended that offshore aquaculture operations be conducted in Chilean maritime areas within the Territorial Sea, extending up to 12 nautical miles westward from the coastline, without necessitating modifications to the existing legal framework.