Abstract

A “toxic tour” to Salamandra Island, led by residents of Puerto Eden, unveils the issue of anthropogenic waste accumulation on remote islands, inhabited by people, in the middle of peatlands, glaciers, and remote fjords. As invited researchers, we grapple with the challenge of making these wastes visible without impacting the identity of local inhabitants. Our work addresses this dilemma through a tailored theoretical-methodological framework to render anthropogenic waste visible and legible in island contexts, articulated in four axes: governance, coercion, reflexivity, and consequences. Specifically, we incorporate satellite remote sensing data to quantify the percentage increase of waste in the last axis. The research emphasizes the role of island governance based on residual bodies and legal-administrative actions that delay waste visibility and management initiatives, leading to the systematic illegibility of anthropogenic waste of Puerto Edén. This scenario is exacerbated by truncated development plans and depopulation, which undermine collective efforts for transparency and proper waste management. We conclude that, because of lagging governance in anthropogenic waste, its legibility cannot be taken for granted. Hence the urgency of adopting integrated approaches that consider local specificities, allied with forms of visibilit