Climate change and productivity in the aquaculture industry

Abstract

It is anticipated that global warming will increase the future temperature in the waters off Norway. The objective of this report is to analyse the potential economic effect a general increase in sea temperature can have on the Norwegian salmon aquaculture industry. The assessment of the economic impacts of global warming is made possible by estimating a growth function which explicitly includes sea water temperature. The analysis compares the economic effect of a climate change on fish farming plants in the south and north of Norway, respectively between Lista in the south and Skrova in the north. The scenarios are based on a model with monthly seasonal variation in temperature.