Evaluating marine protected areas for managing marine resource conflict in Hawaii

Conflict surrounding commercial fisheries is a common phenomenon when diverse stakeholders are involved. Harvesting reef fish for the global ornamental fish trade has provoked conflict since the late 1970s in the State of Hawaii. Two decades later the state of Hawaii established a network of marine protected areas (MPAs) on the west coast of the island of Hawaii (“West Hawaii”) to protect and enhance the fish resources and alleviate conflict between stakeholders, principally between commercial dive tour operators and aquarium fishers. The perceptions held by these stakeholders on West Hawaii and Maui were evaluated to understand how MPAs influenced conflict dimensions, as the former location had a well-established MPA network designed to alleviate conflict, while the latter did not. This was accomplished by analyzing the following questions: (1) perceptions about the effectiveness of MPAs to alleviate conflict and enhance reef fish; (2) perceived group encounters and threats to coral reefs; (3) willingness to encourage fishing; and (4) value orientations toward the aquarium fish trade. The results indicate the MPAs in West Hawaii were moderately effective for alleviating conflict, encounters between stakeholders occurred on both islands, dive operators strongly opposed commercial fishing and perceived aquarium fishing as a serious threat to the coral reef ecosystem, and polarized value orientations toward the aquarium fish trade confirms pervasive social values conflict. The conflict between these groups was also asymmetrical. MPAs are inadequate for resolving long term conflict between groups who hold highly dissimilar value orientations toward the use of marine resources. Future marine spatial planning and MPA setting processes should include stakeholder value and conflict assessments to avoid and manage tensions between competing user groups.     

Social,economic and trade characteristics of the elasmobranch fishery on Unguja Island,Zanzibar, East Africa

Understanding the socio-economic drivers underpinning fishers' decisions to target elasmobranchs is considered vital in determining sustainable management objectives for these species, yet limited empirical data is collected. This study presents an overview of elasmobranch catch, trade and socio-economic characteristics of Zanzibar's small-scale, artisanal fishery. The value of applying this information to future elasmobranch fisheries policy is demonstrated. In August 2015, interviews were conducted with fishers (n = 39) and merchants (n = 16) at two landing sites, Kizimkazi-Dimbani and Mkokotoni, along with the main market site in Stone Town. Additionally, elasmobranch catches were recorded across the same locations between June and August 2015. Elasmobranchs were listed as target species by 49% of fishers interviewed. Whilst most fishers (n = 30) stated that 76–100% of their household income came from fishing, there was variation in how elasmobranch catch and trade contributed. One-third of fishers (n = 36) that caught and sold elasmobranchs reported that 41–60% of their income came from elasmobranch catch. However, for some fishers (n = 8) elasmobranch catch represented 0–20% of their income, whilst for others (n = 4) it represented 81–100%. Differences in fisheries income and elasmobranch price could be attributed to several interacting factors including season, weather, fishing effort, fishing gear, target catch and consumer demand. Further, elasmobranch price was influenced by size and species. The study revealed information on catch, trade, markets and socio-economy that is important for future research, conservation and management of elasmobranchs and fisheries in Zanzibar. The methods utilised have potential for broader application to understudied, artisanal elasmobranch fisheries in the western Indian Ocean.     

An overview of socio-economic and ecological perspectives of Fiji's inshore reef fisheries

This paper reviews the socio-economic and ecological context of Fijian reef fisheries. This review is deemed necessary because improved understanding of the state and trends of Fiji's coral reef fisheries on a national level is required for designing an effective management plan for Fiji's inshore reef fisheries. The most important point that emerges from our review is that despite numerous studies of Fiji's reef fisheries, the current status of reef-associated fisheries at the national level is still uncertain due, mainly, to the lack of dependable data on the subsistence fisheries. This in turn leads to uncertainty about how the continuation of fishing, in particular, fishing focused on target species for the coral reef resources trade, will affect fishing communities and the ecosystem.     

Disentangling seafood value chains: Tourism and the local market driving small-scale fisheries

Identifying socio-economic drivers of small-scale fisheries is a fundamental step to understand impacts and pressures on fishery resources, and the behaviour of seafood trade actors. It is especially relevant for developing countries where such information is usually lacking and fisheries management is greatly needed. To address this gap, this study maps the structure of value chains of fish and marine invertebrates caught by small-scale fisheries from São Vicente, Cape Verde (West Africa), and examines the main socio-economic drivers behind the seafood trade on the island. Specifically, it shows how drivers, such as tourism and the local market, shape the preferences for certain species and how they affect the distribution of income among actors involved in the seafood trade. To collect this information, interviews were done with fishers, small-scale traders, market vendors, and restaurant owners, in all fishing communities of the island of São Vicente, in 2015. Tourism and the local market drive the exploitation of a wide variety of marine species, from small demersal low trophic level fish and marine invertebrates, to large pelagic high trophic level fish species. Moreover, the local seafood market, and especially tourism dynamics, contribute to the unequal distribution of income among actor groups, benefiting mostly restaurant owners due to their direct access to tourist consumers. Such findings have implications for local fishery resources management, food security, and fishing communities’ livelihoods.     

Policy and practice in the live reef fish for food trade: A case study from Palawan,Philippines

The live reef fish for food trade is a highly significant fishery that provides income for many coastal communities in the Asia-Pacific region but faces challenges relating to sustainability. This paper draws attention to the large gaps that exist between policy and practice in the live reef fish for food trade in Palawan, Philippines. While many policies have been introduced over many years, effective implementation remains a challenge. We show how the implementation of successive sets of policies has been hindered by three broadly inter-related features of the local social landscape: the capacity of government institutions and legal frameworks to implement regulations, the distinctive culture of fisheries governance in the Philippines, and the perspectives and practices of local fishers themselves. By focusing on the gaps between policy and practice, we highlight the ongoing need to examine more explicitly the ways in which local contexts shape the effectiveness of implementation, enforcement and policy more generally.     

Assistance networks in seafood trade – A means to assess benefit distribution in small-scale fisheries

This article addresses the connections between value chain actors in the tropical-marine small-scale fisheries of Zanzibar, Tanzania, to contribute to a better understanding of the fisher-trader link and how connections in general might feed into livelihood security. A sample of 168 fishers and 130 traders was taken across 8 sites through questionnaires and observations. The small-scale fishery system is mapped using a value chain framework both traditionally and from a less economic point of view where the assistance-exchange networks between fishery actors add another layer of complexity. Auxiliary actors previously disregarded emerge from the latter method thus shedding light on the poorly understood distribution of benefits from seafood trade. Female actors participate quite differently, relative to males in the market system, detached from high-value links such as the tourist industry, and access to predetermined or secured sales deals. Data shows that the fisher-trader link is not as one-sided as previously presented. In fact it has a more symbiotic exchange deeply nested in a broader trading and social system. Expanding the analysis from this link by taking a further step downstream highlights traders’ own sales arrangements and the social pressures they are under in realizing them. A complex picture, inclusive of diversified perspectives, on interactions in the market place is presented, as well as a reflection on the remaining critical question: how to integrate this type of data into decisions about future fisheries governance.     

The money side of livelihoods: Economics of an unregulated small-scale Indonesian sea cucumber fishery in the Timor Sea

Fishers from several ethnic groups on islands in eastern Indonesia seasonally fish for sea cucumbers at Scott Reef in Australia's Exclusive Economic Zone in the Timor Sea. Despite evidence suggesting that sea cucumbers are severely over-exploited fishers continue to voyage to the reef. How the traditional fishery operates under this condition and more broadly what economic drivers cause fishers to make the long and arduous voyage is vital to understanding this small-scale fishery and developing appropriate strategies for management. This study is the first to investigate these dynamic livelihood aspects using semi-structured interviews and fishers’ voluntarily recorded data on their catches, costs of fishing and the sales of those catches and income received over a six year period. The study demonstrated that costs, borrowings, and revenues differed between crews, leading to widely varying profits. Nevertheless, every crew that recorded the sale of their catches made a profit. Rapidly appreciating prices for their sea cucumber harvest, predominantly comprising low value species, was critical to maintaining the fishery's profitability. The income earned by some crews and boat owners were far greater than those potentially available to them through other livelihood strategies such as agriculture, coastal fisheries or trade opportunities. This study also suggests the depletion of high value sea cucumber species is ongoing. This Indonesian sea cucumber fishery at Scott Reef illustrates the linkages between stock sustainability, fishers’ livelihood outcomes, and the burgeoning Asian demand for sea cucumbers and the findings can inform the current management discourse on this small-scale transboundary fishery.     

Market integration and its relation to income distribution and inequality among fishers and traders: The case of two small-scale Kenyan reef fisheries

This study, carried out in five fishing communities along the Kenyan coast, examined fisheries-derived income of fishers and traders in two different invertebrate fisheries (octopus and sea cucumber) and tested if differences in global market integration of these two products could explain differences in income inequalities among actors involved in the two fisheries. The structure of the value chains was mapped, differences in income between fishers and traders tested, and income inequalities among actors in each fishery examined. Although the octopus fishery included a greater diversity of actors and thereby provides income to a larger group of people, income inequality in this fishery was higher among fishers and traders than in the sea cucumber fishery. Thus, the often cited relationship between increasing market integration and income inequality may require a re-evaluation and a more nuanced treatment.     

Time preference of small-scale fishers in open access and traditionally managed reef fisheries

Individuals with high discount rates are likely not partial to conservation because they are unwilling to sacrifice short term benefits for potentially higher gains in the future. Many reef fisheries worldwide are open access, and fishers under open access systems are theorized to discount the future at an infinite rate. In contrast, fishers in a customary managed fishery can be expected to be more long term oriented, and thus possibly have lower discount rates. The present study tests this hypothesis by eliciting the discount rates of fishers in an open access small-scale reef fishery, and compares these rates to those of fishers in a customary managed reef fishery. Results indicate that fishers in both open access and traditionally managed reef fisheries have high annual discount rates that are on average over 200%. Contrary to expectations, fishers under an open access system are not associated with higher discount rates compared to customary management. It also appears that a larger proportion of open access fishers are more long-term oriented than those in the customary managed fishery, which is encouraging for the future conservation and sustainability of open access fisheries resources.     

Economic value of marine ecosystem services in Zanzibar: Implications for marine conservation and sustainable development

Marine ecosystem services are seriously undervalued, resulting in under-investment in conservation and lost opportunities for economic growth and poverty reduction. Economic valuation provides a powerful tool for sustainable development by showing how dependent the economy is on an ecosystem and what would be lost if the ecosystem is not protected. This paper estimates the value of marine ecosystem services in Zanzibar, links the values to the national income accounts, and quantifies how the benefits from each ecosystem service are distributed among five different stakeholder groups. Marine ecosystem services contribute 30% of GDP, yet the ecosystem is seriously degraded due to both human and natural causes. The paper explores the reasons for this, focusing on the distribution of benefits and the (dis)incentives this creates for conservation, especially among local communities that steward the marine ecosystem.     

基于Ecopath模型的七连屿礁栖性生物的生态承载力分析

生态承载力评估是开展生物资源增殖放流, 维持珊瑚礁生态系统健康的基础和前提。本文基于2019年渔业资源和生态环境的综合调查数据, 构建了七连屿珊瑚礁海域生态系统的生态通道(Ecopath)模型, 分析和探讨了相关功能组增殖放流的生态承载力。结果显示, 七连屿珊瑚礁海域生态系统各功能群营养级范围为1.00~3.81; 生态系统的总能量转化效率为13.45%; 生态系统以牧食食物链占据主导地位, 直接来源于初级生产者的能流占比为57%。系统总初级生产量/总呼吸量为2.54; 总初级生产量/总生物量为19.07; 系统连接指数和系统杂食性指数分别为0.36和0.22, 表明当前七连屿珊瑚礁海域生态系统的成熟度和稳定性偏低, 系统对于外界的干扰抵抗能力较弱。在未改变七连屿珊瑚礁生态系统结构和功能的前提下, 各功能组中珊瑚、双壳类和植食性鱼类的生态承载力分别为25.09~53.77t•km^-2、2.55~39.95t•km^-2和4.89~17.94t•km^-2, 因此仍具有较大的增殖空间。珊瑚礁鱼类群落的最大生态承载力同珊瑚礁无脊椎动物群落的增殖密切相关, 在未来的珊瑚礁渔业管理中应从生态系统整体结构的角度综合考虑增殖放流的方法设计。     

Small-scale fisheries and food security strategies in countries in the Benguela Current Large Marine Ecosystem (BCLME) region: Angola,Namibia and South Africa

This paper provides an overview of the small-scale fisheries sector in countries within the Benguela Current Large Marine Ecosystem (BCLME), one of the most productive large marine ecosystems in the world. The study revealed that Angola, Namibia and South Africa have very different legal and policy frameworks, show different levels of compliance with international and regional agreements to protect the livelihoods and food security of small-scale fishers, as well as of integration of fisheries into food security objectives. Angolan law recognises and protects small-scale fishers through legal and institutional mechanisms. In Namibia, this sector of fishers is not legally recognised, while in South Africa traditional fishers have been largely excluded from the new fisheries management framework. Trends in national and regional fish consumption and in the extent of export orientation in fisheries are explored, as well as the potential threats to small-scale producers and food security in the region posed by ongoing drives to incorporate fisheries in the World Trade Organisation (WTO) agreements.     

Analysis of trophic networks and carbon flows in south-eastern Baltic coastal ecosystems

Carbon flows in five south-eastern Baltic coastal ecosystems (Puck Bay, Curonian Lagoon, Lithuanian coast, Gulf of Riga coast and Pärnu Bay) were compared on the basis of ECOPATH models using 12 common functional groups. The studied systems ranged from the hypertrophic Curonian Lagoon to the mesotrophic Gulf of Riga coast. Interestingly, we found that macrophytes were not consumed by grazers, but rather channelled into the detritus food chain. In all ecosystems fisheries had far reaching impacts on their target species and on the food-web in general. In particular, benthic food-webs were partly affected by indirect fisheries effects. For example, fisheries tend to change the biomass of piscivorous fish, causing a cascading effect on benthivorous fish and macrozoobenthos. These cascades are ecosystem specific and need to be considered when using benthic invertebrates as productivity and eutrophication indicators. Odum’s maturity attributes allowed a ranking of costal ecosystems according to their maturity. Namely, the community development decreased in the following order: Pärnu Bay > Gulf of Riga coast > Lithuanian coast > Puck Bay > Curonian Lagoon.     

Principal socio-economic characteristics of the Greek small-scale coastal fishermen

The development of a typology of the Greek small-scale fishermen, based on socio-economic and fisheries information was examined using data from 551 fishermen interviews in 18 prefectures of Greece. The fishermen are relatively aged, they have mostly attained elementary education and their annual income is low. The catch is traded in both the wholesale and the retail market. The income from fisheries is significantly higher in continental than insular prefectures and higher in the Aegean than the Ionian Sea. The fishermen were categorised in three groups of dependence on fisheries (high, medium and low) according to the percentage of income originating from fishing, with more than 60% of the fishermen belonging to the high dependence group. There were significant differences among these groups in the fishermen age, annual income from fisheries, vessel length and the yearly days of fishing activity. The nature of the fishing licensing system and its implications for management are discussed and also compared to other European and Mediterranean countries. The individual treatment of the identified groups in the licensing procedure is discussed with regard to its fisheries and social impact. The pronounced geographic features revealed by the study on the level of dependence on fishing suggest that the regional particularities, linked to ecosystem heterogeneity, should be considered carefully in the management process.     

The Bering Sea—A dynamic food web perspective

The Bering Sea is a high-latitude, semi-enclosed sea that supports extensive fish, seabird, marine mammal, and invertebrate populations and some of the world's most productive fisheries. The region consists of several distinct biomes that have undergone wide-scale population variation, in part due to fisheries, but also in part due to the effects of interannual and decadal-scale climatic variation. While recent decades of ocean observation have highlighted possible links between climate and species fluctuations, mechanisms linking climate and population fluctuations are only beginning to be understood. Here, we examine the food webs of Bering Sea ecosystems with particular reference to some key shifts in widely distributed, abundant fish populations and their links with climate variation. Both climate variability and fisheries have substantially altered the Bering Sea ecosystem in the past, but their relative importance in shaping the current ecosystem state remains uncertain.     

Middlemen,a critical social-ecological link in coastal communities of Kenya and Zanzibar

This paper analyzes the middlemen–fishermen link in coastal communities along the coast of southern Kenya and Zanzibar, and explores effects of reciprocal agreements and credit arrangements on social-ecological feedbacks of coastal systems. The existence and generality of such arrangements are mapped and their effect on resource use and ecosystem dynamics is then explored. Data show that credit arrangements are widespread and that fishermen are bound by reciprocal agreements and financial guarantees during periods of lower catches that provide short-term stabilizing social effects. These arrangements create incentives which disconnect resource extraction from ecosystem dynamics and impede development of sustainable use practices. The role of middlemen is seldom accounted for in fisheries governance. Scenarios for the development of small-scale fisheries in the region are outlined and the function of middlemen is discussed considering the influence of external drivers. Policies that incorporate middlemen are recommended to improve the governance of fish stocks and coastal ecosystems in East Africa.     

Social,economic and environmental effects of closing commercial fisheries to enhance recreational fishing

Recreational fishing mortality can have a major impact on coastal fish populations, bringing recreational fishers into conflict with commercial fisheries. This article reviews exclusion zones for commercial fishing, or ‘recreational fishing areas’ as a solution to the conflict between commercial and recreational fisheries. Recently designated recreational fishing areas in the state of Queensland, Australia are examined as a case-study. The goal of recreational fishing areas is to enhance recreational fishing and provide economic opportunities through charter fishing. However, recently designated recreational fishing areas in Queensland have not been thoroughly assessed for their social, economic and environmental impacts and they are not integrated within existing management frameworks for fisheries. The designation of recreational fishing areas is thus a shift away from evidence-based management in Queensland's fisheries and has likely occurred solely for political reasons – there are more voters in the recreational fishery than commercial fishery. In Queensland, excluding commercial fishing on its own is unlikely to result in long-term benefits to recreational fisheries because recreational harvest is a major component of fish harvest for some key species and there is no legislated limit to recreational harvest. Current political attention on recreational fishing areas provides an opportunity for fisheries managers, politicians, conservation groups and the public to discuss what is needed to manage sustainable coastal fisheries. In particular, recreational fishing areas need to be combined with efforts to enhance stewardship among recreational fishers if they are to be successful in the long-term.     

Comparison of simultaneous and combinatorial auction designs in fisheries quota market

Individual transferable quota (ITQ) markets are being used successfully to distribute quotas in single region and single species fisheries. In many parts of the world, the development of well crafted markets for multispecies or multiregional fisheries is still evolving. As a result, there exists an opportunity to inform policy by providing research insights into the relative merits of alternative market designs for such fisheries.This study explored the relative merits of a simultaneous ascending auction design and an iterative combinatorial auction design for a hypothetical multiple region quota market. In a simultaneous auction, separate auctions are run in parallel for individual species or regions. During intermediate rounds, fishers can adjust their bids in auction depending on their position in the other auction. In a combinatorial auction, a fisher can purchase a combination of quotas (or a package quota) for different fish species or regions in the same auction. Being able to acquire bundles of species or regions allows fishers to take advantage of complementarities. To date, the potentials of such auctions have not been thoroughly tested in fisheries quota markets. This study found that while a simultaneous auction design was more efficient than combinatorial auction design overall, combinatorial market design took fewer rounds to make final allocations and performed better in high synergy environments.     

Participation and resistance: Alternative seafood marketing in a neoliberalera

This paper suggests that detrimental effects of certain neoliberal fisheries policies are key drivers behind the development of alternative seafood marketing programs in North America. It examines the structures, market and non-market values, and challenges of these programs. The primary aim of the research, based on interviews involving 20 programs and a conference workshop, was to advance understanding of the market value of alternative seafood marketing to fishers and communities. However, the importance of a broader set of non-market values was repeatedly highlighted by those engaged in these programs. Overall, the research suggests that alternative seafood marketing can enable fishers to participate in fisheries managed by neoliberal, market-based policies, through the promotion of market values along their diverse value chains. At the same time, alternative seafood marketing appears to resist market-based fishing systems, sometimes through the promotion of broader, non-market outcomes. Common challenges along these alternative seafood value chains highlight the structural conflicts that exist while simultaneously participating in and resisting neoliberal fisheries structures.     

Development trajectories and impacts on coral reef use in Lingayen Gulf,Philippines

Management interventions to reduce pressures on coral reefs often include attracting fishers to non-extractive non-fishery supplemental livelihoods. We look at the case of coral reefs in Lingayen Gulf, Philippines to understand the impacts of local (i.e., aquaculture and tourism), regional, and national development on the artisanal fisheries sector. Using household surveys and a coral reef interaction index (CRII), we obtained relative levels of dependency and impacts of fisheries, aquaculture, and tourism on coral reefs for livelihood. Results show that overall dependency on coral reefs remains high despite its decreasing quality. Socio-economic profiles reveal steep hurdles in shifting fishers to aquaculture. Both aquaculture and fisheries will continue to grow and eventually compete for space if left unmanaged further resulting in reduced reef quality. Shifts of fishers to tourism-based and other low-capital requirement mariculture (e.g., sea ranching) are more realistic than the expectation of absorbing fishers into current aquaculture businesses. Strengthening local coastal governance capacity to improve proactive responses for micro–macro development interactive synergy will also help reduce the impacts of development on reefs. Improving safety nets for coastal communities through skills enhancement and supplemental livelihood options that facilitate stewardship and reef recovery is an imperative. Transforming the lessons learned at village level actions to sustain municipal scale programs and institutional cooperation among stakeholders such as through marine protected area networks remain a challenge. Sharing forums and joint financing of coastal resource management remain to be realized through public and private partnerships and expansion of development for investments in social enterprises.