Fisheries annual fixed cost data collection and estimation methodology: An application in the Northeast,U.S.

Information on the cost of fishing is integral in measuring fisheries performance and correctly evaluating the economic impacts of fisheries regulations and management rules. However, limited availability of cost data often renders such analyses either incomplete or implausible. This study discusses a survey effort that was undertaken in the Northeast US to collect fisheries annual fixed cost data directly from commercial fishermen. Stratified random samples of fishing vessel owners were surveyed in 2012 and 2013. An overview of the survey procedures, sample selection and administration is given here. The data cleaning process, non-response bias and data summaries are also presented. A modeling framework is discussed for estimating fisheries cost data. Robust cost models in combination with regular data collection efforts will allow for more complete economic and financial analyses relevant to fisheries management and conservation.     

Constraints on community participation in salmon fisheries management in Northwest Russia

Salmon fishing used to be the primary source of income in many rural areas of Arkhangelsk oblast in northwest Russia. People who settled in the area received a name Pomory, from Russian po moriu, meaning by sea, because their subsistence activities became marine fishing and hunting and seafaring. Local fisheries have undergone significant changes as post-Soviet Russia embraced the market economy and the state introduced fishing concessions. The current Russian law only allows fishing for salmon through officially registered recreational or commercial fisheries. Both these options are often either unavailable or unaffordable to rural dwellers, which leaves them with limited or no legal access to their traditional salmon fisheries. There has been a growing concern for protecting communities’ fishing rights among wider society in Arkhangelsk oblast. City activists promoted Pomory identity and appealed to the Russian government to grant Pomory an indigenous status to secure their access to fisheries. Although Pomor activism did not reach most of its proclaimed goals, it has contributed to promoting the image of Arkhangelsk oblast as a homeland to Pomor fishing. This image has played an important part in what Arkhangelsk authorities have called socially-oriented fisheries management. Officials have made good attempts to better accommodate rural communities’ access to fishing resources. Yet, these attempts have failed to include fishermen as active participants in the process. This paper looks at constraints on community participation in fisheries management in Russia. It considers both historical and contemporary reasons for the low participation of local community in fisheries management.     

Swedish coastal herring fisheries in the wake of an ITQ system

The European common fisheries policy (CFP) advocates measures to sustain small-scale fisheries; hence, in the European Commission's proposal for a reformed CFP, these are exempted from a mandatory system with tradable fishing concessions. This opens up for management actions designed for small-scale fisheries, but also implies new management issues. This article provides insights into the topic based on a Swedish small-scale herring fishery in the western Baltic Sea that was exempted from an ITQ-system. The fishery has been profitable since the system was introduced, and the increasing effort of both incumbent fishermen and new entrants implies a situation where fishermen compete for a limited quota. The migratory pattern of the herring implies high densities in the southern parts of the fishing areas during spring and in the northern parts during autumn. This forms the basis for two different fisheries in the area, as well as for the current management proposal to divide the quota into a spring and an autumn part. This and other management proposals are discussed in the paper. The main conclusion from the case study is that, when exempting a fishery from tradable fishing concessions, it is important to build other institutions dealing with the fundamental problem of access to the quota. Failure to do so might result in an over-capacity issue and threaten the long-run development of an otherwise successful small-scale fishery.     

Performance of a northwestern Mediterranean bottom trawl fleet: How the integration of landings and VMS data can contribute to the implementation of ecosystem-based fisheries management

The European Union has established a framework to achieve or maintain good environmental status in the marine environment by 2020. The Marine Strategy Framework Directive requires the application of the ecosystem approach to the management of human activities, covering all sectors having an impact on the marine environment. However, fisheries in the Mediterranean are far from a systematic implementation of an ecosystem-based fisheries management (EBFM). Aiming to address this issue, this study explores the potential of the relationship between daily yield by vessel (landings and income by species) and vessel position (known via vessel monitoring system) as a tool for fleet management. This approach is possible due to the current dynamics of Mediterranean fleets, with vessels returning daily to the harbour where landings are registered as weight and income by vessel. Moreover, vessels of >15 m total length have been compulsory monitored by VMS since 2005. A bottom trawl fleet that operates in the northwestern Mediterranean was chosen to develop this approach. Different groups of trawlers were identified, which could be linked to the strategies displayed by the fishermen that were mainly driven by the target species dynamics. Accurate knowledge of the fishing targets driving the fleet dynamics and of the fishing strategies at the vessel level (i.e. fishing ground habitat where the fishing pressure is exerted and corresponding landings) are shown to be a feasible tool for fleet management.     

Thirty years after privatization: A survey of Icelandic small-boat fishermen

Iceland's nationwide privatized Individual Transferable Quota (ITQ) system is over thirty years old but remains a topic of public and political debate, particularly because of the continued effects on small-scale fisheries. A national survey of small-boat fishermen was distributed to: (1) identify major defining characteristics of participants in ITQ and non-ITQ fisheries, (2) document and examine differences in satisfaction with fisheries management, and (3) evaluate the existing options for newcomers to participate in small-boat fisheries. Survey results indicate that Icelandic small-boat fishermen are engaged in multiple management systems within a wide range of boat sizes. Those who held quota were more satisfied with the current ITQ system compared to those who did not hold quota; however, nearly all fishermen were still critical of fisheries management in Iceland and the two major non-ITQ options of lumpfish and coastal fishing were not perceived to offer significant opportunity for entry-level fishermen. Dissatisfaction stemmed from the lack of decision-making power, a distrust of scientific advice, and the perception that the ITQ system did not serve the purpose of protecting fisheries resources, but was rather oriented only toward economic goals. The dynamic nature of Icelandic small-boat fishing livelihoods and the pervasive negative attitudes thirty years after ITQ implementation demonstrate the need for culturally appropriate and equitable fisheries management schemes where success is measured in social as well as economic and biological terms.     

Considering communities in fisheries management

Fisheries management in the United States, the European Union, and other parts of the globe, increasingly reflects a burgeoning realization that fisheries management policies affect not only fishermen, but also the broader communities in which fishermen work and reside. Understanding fishing communities, however, is not a straightforward task. Researchers draw upon many methodologies across diverse disciplines in the attempt to better understand the needs of fishing communities and the ways in which fisheries management programs affect these communities. This special issue draws together international research on fishing communities, highlighting the diverse relationships between people, places and their fish and fisheries. Rather than attempting to consolidate these complex, multifarious relationships into simple metrics, the papers presented in this issue illuminate community needs and wants from a variety of frameworks highlighting the importance of meaningfully understanding local contexts. These papers represent novel frameworks and case studies, adding depth of scholarly knowledge to a relatively understudied segment of fisheries management. Specifically, the goal of this issue is to advance the inclusion of community considerations in fisheries management processes. While approaching the topic of fishing communities from diverse perspectives, the papers in this special issue work together to provide a broad view of the concerns and conflicts existent in these communities. They highlight the need for management endeavors to be flexible, broad, and inclusive, providing potential tools and frameworks to aid in management projects.     

Enacting and contesting neoliberalism in fisheries: The tragedy of commodifying lobster access rights in Southwest Nova Scotia

Atlantic Canadian fisheries policy exhibits a tension between competing objectives of economic efficiency, and of well-being and equity within coastal communities and small-scale fisheries. The struggle between different actors over these objectives has generated distinct forms of neoliberalism in different regions and fishing fleets. In the lobster fishery, the right to fish has been concentrated since limited-entry licensing policy was introduced in the 1980s. This paper examines actors and events at two scales, including Lobster Fishing Area (LFA) 34 Advisory Committee meetings involving fishermen, representatives of Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO), and other stakeholders, and broader scale strategies of the Canadian Independent Fish Harvesters Federation (CIFHF). A Foucauldian perspective aids in understanding how fisheries governance is the product of struggles between the power and agency of individual fishermen, fishing organizations, processing companies, the DFO, the Minister of Fisheries and the courts. While many theorists view fisheries through the lens of the “tragedy of the commons”, alternative tragedies are developing in Atlantic Canadian fisheries. These include rising levels of debt, reduced earnings, vulnerability to financial volatility, loss of fishing rights within communities, and too much processor control.     

Community based fishery management within the Menai Bay conservation area: A survey of the resource user

Management strategies are challenging to implement in Zanzibar's fisheries because the local people depend upon these resources for basic subsistence. This difficulty epitomizes the vital need for sustainable management: the more people need a fishery, the harder it is to limit fishing to allow regeneration. Comparing fisheries management strategies in two coastal villages in Unguja, the largest island of Zanzibar, Tanzania, this paper confirms the results of existing scholarship that communitybased strategies provide the most promising solutions to this challenge. Interviews with officials from the Department of Fisheries and Marine Resources, Village Fishermen Committees, and 51 fishermen in the villages of Kizimkazi Dimbani and Jambiani reveal the efficacy of strategies where local fishermen are centrally involved. The fishermen interviews reveal ignorance of existing fishing regulations and a lack of enforcement while fishermen at both sites noted that many illegal methods of fishing are still in use and expressed concern that such methods damage fish stocks. The Village Fishermen Committees, a recently implemented community-based initiative, are well attended by fishermen, and constitute a management strength that this paper concludes should be the foundation of future policy. To be successful, these committees need additional educational and financial resources.     

Moral discourse in fisheries co-management: A case study of the Senja fishery,northern Norway

Communication is essential to co-management. This paper examines how the outcome of management processes in a fisheries co-management system in northern Norway depends on communicative interaction between the fishermen. Legitimacy is held as an essential condition for well functioning user-based regulation in the fishery, and is often seen as a result when user-groups are involved in the management process. This paper argues that involving user-groups is not enough for legitimating regulations. Legitimacy also depends on the nature of communication in the decision-making process. In the terminology of Habermas, management institutions having a communicative design that encourages moral discourse would have a higher degree of legitimacy than institutions having an instrumental design. Not only because the decision-making process is emphasized, but also because it has potential to give room for other communities of interests beyond the use of fishing gears. The paper also discusses how fishermen may act communicatively in ways that include normative and moral issues of fisheries management.     

Fishermen perception on resources management and aquaculture development in the Mecoacan estuary,Tabasco, Mexico

The southern Mexican states on the coast of the Gulf of Mexico produce approximately 85% of the total national oil production. The region has also attracted attention due its important economic influence in terms of fisheries, aquaculture and agriculture, and for its ecosystem diversity. The justification for more integrated approaches to aquaculture development is significant, as coastal aquaculture has brought economic and employment benefits to both national economies and coastal people. The aim of this study is the analysis of Mecoacan fishing communities’ perception on coastal resources management and to assess group awareness of the potential benefits and impacts of coastal aquaculture. Although aquaculture practices have been implemented as an alternative to fishing and to improve current levels of fisheries production, the results showed that conditions within Mecoacan fisheries have deteriorated significantly, as collective aggregation is not producing a positive outcome for the local communities. However, fishermen regarded the restructuring of fishing organisations as a means of integrating employment and income generation alternatives such as aquaculture practices. Therefore, a key to success will be to demonstrate the ability of good coastal management to promote capacity building within coastal communities in the context of a participatory intervention strategy through formal and informal organisations.     

Reforming management of commercial fisheries in a small island territory

The Falkland Islands has successfully met many challenges in the management and development of its fisheries resources over the last 20 years. To meet a new set of challenges the current licensing system based on the allocation of non-transferable, variable duration licences to individual vessels is being replaced by a system of long-term individual transferable rights owned by Falkland Islanders. The anticipated gains are enhanced economic performance of the sector because fishing businesses have increased security and flexibility, rapid diversification from harvesting into value-added activities and increased international competitiveness as poorly performing companies sell rights to well performing companies. Implementing a rights-based regime in a small coastal state is challenging. Thin markets for rights, a desire to maintain local control of fishing rights, and a dependence on foreign direct investment in the fisheries sector are key considerations in the design of an effective and efficient management regime. Starting operation in 2006/07, the new rights-based management system provides a model for small coastal states or small industrial fisheries that previously had considered rights-based systems too complex to implement and administer, despite the inherent advantages of rights-based management.     

A survey of US halibut IFQ holders: Market participation,attitudes, and impacts

This paper presents the results of a survey of US halibut IFQ holders exploring market participation, opinions about IFQs, and perceived fishery and community effects of IFQs. A four-step mail survey was sent to a stratified random sample of 14% of the total population of quota holders, producing a response rate of 46%, or 506 returned surveys. Survey results suggest that while there is a wide diversity of opinions and perceptions of IFQs, there are some predictable trends in the ways that different groups of fishery participants experience and respond to these programs. Gender, income, age, employment and ethnicity are linked to IFQ market behavior. Income, residency, and ethnicity are linked to attitudes about IFQs. A discriminate function analysis indicates that older individuals, individuals who make less money, and indigenous fishermen are more likely to sell quota and less likely to buy quota. Women and those who are primarily employed in fishing are more likely to be buyers of quota rather than sellers. Fishermen who identify as Alaska Native, residents of small remote fishing communities in the Gulf of Alaska, and low-income fishermen show the least support for IFQ management. Quota holders who have high incomes, do not consider their communities to be dependent on fishing, and residents of Community Development Quota communities express the most support for IFQs. Overall, 84% of survey respondents believe that IFQs are changing the fishing lifestyle; 75% state that IFQs are changing the values in fishing; and 75% perceive of IFQs as private property. A majority of surveyed IFQs holders perceive both positive and negative impacts of IFQs to fisheries and to communities. Perceived positive impacts include: improved safety; improved price; market stability; improved management; consumer benefits; environmental benefits; longer fishing season; and professionalization and stability of the fishing fleet. Perceived negative impacts include: limitations on access and barriers to entry; consolidation and job loss; inequities experienced by small boats, rural fishermen, and crew; creation of a privileged class of fishermen; negative environmental impacts; and less local participation.     

The potential compatibility of offshore wind power and fisheries: An example using bluefin tuna in the Adriatic Sea

Given the increasing competition for marine resources, regulatory strategies that benefit multiple stakeholders are increasingly important. Offshore wind power generating facilities are becoming more common in the marine environment and alter the characteristics of the fisheries in the surrounding area. Floating wind turbines can act as fish aggregating devices (FAD), thereby increasing the catchability for some species. Many marine recreational fisheries are open access without effort restrictions; therefore, control of total harvest is difficult. Creating a limited entry recreational fishery and excluding commercial fishing from the area surrounding offshore wind turbines may aid in controlling total harvest and may benefit several important stakeholder groups: (1) recreational and commercial fishermen in terms of higher recreational catch rates and potentially higher overall yield, (2) fisheries managers in terms of more precise control of recreational fisheries harvest, and (3) owners of offshore wind power facilities in terms of reduced risk of damage to infrastructure due to fishing activity. We discuss the compatibility of wind power facilities and fisheries, conditions conducive to this compatibility, and provide an example from a proposed offshore wind power facility in the Adriatic Sea and its potential to affect the fisheries management there, particularly for bluefin tuna (Thunnus thynnus).     

Managing sino-ghanaian fishery relations: A political ecology approach

A global recurring challenge for marine managers and policy makers is the effective management of fisheries conflicts. This study demonstrates the usefulness of a political ecology approach in understanding the complexity of conflict in increasingly internationalized national fisheries. By doing so it aims to provide an alternative approach to the environmental security perspectives, predicated on scarcity narratives, that often underpin policy on fishery conflicts. Using a localised example of industrial Chinese and local artisanal fishermen conflict in Ghana, this paper reveals a complex account of contesting ‘access’ to resources, in material and nonmaterial terms, that moves beyond an ‘absolute scarcity’ driven narrative. The conflict is shown to be one, in part, focussed around spatially fixed areas as well as moral claims of correct ways of fishing that reflect social tensions within the local fishing community. Both aspects show long term motivations to keep resource access, rather than being concerned with in the moment struggles over scarce resources. This work also highlights the existence of cooperation between groups of artisanal fishermen involved in transhipment with Chinese fishermen, revealing the complex nexus of winners and losers produced by environmental, social and political factors. In sum, policy must acknowledge that conflict is rarely produced purely by scarcity, and that broader social and political factors often combine in a variety of forms to produce localised conflict. If these complexities are ignored, fisheries policy runs the risk of unintentionally exacerbating conflicts and disadvantaging those who it aims to help.     

Producing nature and enacting difference in ecosystem-based fisheries management: An example from the Northeastern US

The science and management of marine resources is increasingly grappling with the use of ecosystem-based fisheries management. Though ecosystem-based fisheries management seeks to unite biological and sociocultural concerns into a holistic framework, people are often seen simply as external drivers of change. The technical questions that are often posed, such as the delineation of boundaries or the strategies of governance, are however more broadly questions concerning the social production of nature. This paper explores these issues by analyzing both the spatial fishing practices of different fishermen and the results of a series of workshops held in New England to solicit opinions about ecosystem-based fisheries management. The paper emphasizes teasing apart the human dimensions of fishing embedded in predominant notions such as fishing effort through more explicit consideration of spatially based resource dependencies and mutual constitution of society-nature.     

Questionnaire-based assessment of Mediterranean fishing ports,Nile Delta,Egypt

The fisheries sector is a significant contributor to the Egyptian economy. Recently, issues relating to fishing ports have been highlighted in port planning, availability of facilities, management, and environmental issues. Additional problems include Egypt's lack of specific guidelines for planning and design of fishing ports. This paper aims to assess the current status of five fishing ports (both natural and artificial) located along the Mediterranean coast of Egypt. Data were collected via a questionnaire supplied directly to the fishermen. The questionnaire contains two sections that cover information regarding the fishermen and fishing vessels. There are sections to assess the degree of satisfaction of the fishermen regarding economic, environmental, planning, facilities, and managerial issues. 250 fishermen received the questionnaire. The data were analyzed quantitatively and qualitatively. The results confirm that the fishing ports are negatively affected by a number issues, as well as management deficiencies, resulting in several weaknesses. The main issues include pollution, sedimentation, deterioration of infrastructure, and lack of port facilities. It is recommended that decision-makers should develop monitoring tools and improve infrastructure and services. Recommendations are made for future development to enable the expansion in the fishing industry and improve the sustainability of fishing ports.     

Fisheries management at the tri-national border between Belize,Guatemala and Honduras

The Mesoamerican Barrier Reef System has considerably changed after a series of natural disturbances, especially hurricanes and extreme coral bleaching, and is further impacted by anthropogenic threats. Located at a tri-national border between Belize, Guatemala and Honduras, the Sapodilla Cayes Range is specifically impacted by tourism, commercial fishing and other anthropogenic activities occurring in the three countries and by the fact that Belize only claims 3 nautical miles of Exclusive Economic Zone in the south pending a settlement to a border dispute with Guatemala. This area represents a source of income and food to several coastal communities and to Belize's economy. Key fisheries products harvested in the area by the three countries are the same but fisheries legislations and the number of fishermen are different, creating conflicts between fishermen. This paper summarizes the key problems that arise in southern Belizean fishing waters and the efforts made by the three countries to ensure the sustainability of the fishery.     

Safety at sea and fisheries management:: fishermen's attitudes and the need for co-management

Safety at sea is a serious issue for the commercial fishing industry; it ranks highly in all assessments of occupational dangers including risk-taking, injuries, and fatalities. This paper examines the impact of fisheries management on safety at sea and the use of fishermen's input in the safety regulatory and management process. Using case study techniques of analysis, 22 boatowners, captains and crew all with a minimum of 10 years experience in the commercial fishing industry and from a common New England port (New Bedford) are interviewed. Findings strongly suggest that regulations that have been primarily designed to reduce pressure on fish stocks may also result in increased pressure on fishermen and decreased safety at sea. Attitudes about the role of the New England Fisheries Management Council and improvements to the safety regulatory and management process particularly with regard to the increased participation by fishermen are also examined.     

Fisheries privatization,social transitions,and well-being in Kodiak,Alaska

Scholars and fishermen alike view the privatization of fishing rights as a fundamental driver of social change in fishing communities. This article presents the results of a mixed-methods ethnographic study in Kodiak, Alaska, exploring how fisheries privatization processes remake fishery systems. Findings from this study suggest that a diverse range of fishery participants share core values about the social dimensions of fishery systems. Support or opposition to past privatization processes tended to be articulated in reference to how these core values (e.g., hard work, opportunity, and fairness) were perceived to have been strengthened or eroded by such processes. Data from this study suggest that while still widespread in the Kodiak fishing community, core social values in fishing may be changing as a result of privatization processes. Although ethnographic and survey data showed a range of perspectives on the effects of privatization on fishing and the Kodiak community, study participants tended to talk about privatization as a significant change that had divisive, negative impacts in the community. Crew members and the next generation of fishermen were identified as disproportionately affected by privatization processes. Ethnographic data detail important shifts in the power, status, and livelihoods of crew members. Nearly all Kodiak fishery participants interviewed expressed concern about the future of fisheries access in the community for the next generation, in large part because of the substantial financial barriers to entry generated by privatization of fisheries access. Many discussed the need for more entry-level opportunities necessary for access in all fisheries.     

Allocation of effort in artisanal fisheries: The importance of migration and temporary fishing camps

In order to avoid conflicts when spatially explicit rules are implemented, it is critical to understand the spatial distribution of fishing effort, the migration patterns of fishermen and the use of temporary fishing camps. The migration of fishermen is a process shaped by historical patterns of resource availability, in addition to economic and political factors. We present an example in which a temporary fishing camp used for extraction of benthic resources (Loco: Concholepas concholepas) changed into a permanent one during the study period. Throughout the study period fishing effort (trips) was closely related to the productivity of the different fishing grounds, with more trips directed to the most productive areas. The conversion from a temporary to a permanent fishing camp did not improve the efficiency of the loco fishery, but did allow better access to alternative resources (surf clams) on nearby fishing grounds. The succession from simple shelters to a permanent ‘caleta’ is a common situation along the Chilean coast, motivated originally by resource availability and more recently by the creation of the TURF system. In particular the TURF system converts temporary (resource driven) movements of fishermen into rigid stationary caletas, which creates a number of problems. Temporary fishing camps are common when fishing grounds are far from the base port, but they require specific administrative tools in order to achieve sustainable fisheries management.