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.     

Self-governance within a QMS framework—The evolution of self-governance in the New Zealand Bluff oyster fishery

This paper examines efforts to develop stakeholder led self-governance in the Bluff oyster fishery. The paper focuses on collaborative management and its ability to address some of the unintended consequences of management. The Bluff oyster fishery's administrative, biological, and economic performances are analysed to assess whether or not the participatory management model, in this case fisheries self-governance, complements individual transferable quota (ITQ) for this inshore shellfish fishery.The paper argues that the Bluff oyster fishery's current self-governance model, based on a fishery plan, aids in improving the performance of the fishery, and that the Bluff oyster fishery has the capacity to shift further towards a stakeholder led self-regulated fishery.     

Unravelling the dynamics of a multi-gear fleet – Inputs for fisheries assessment and management under the Common Fisheries Policy

Effective species management requires good knowledge on vessel dynamics, either at a stock basis or through the establishment of multiannual management plans as advisable under the new European Common Fisheries Policy (CFP). Achieving such knowledge on Portuguese multi-gear fisheries is challenging given the large number of species caught and the different management measures applied to potential target species. The latter ranges from no input or output controls to output controls based on individual vessel quotas (IVQ). To provide accurate regional knowledge to the CFP, the dynamics of vessels involved in the trammel net fishery targeting anglerfish (Lophius spp.) was characterised based on onboard sampling data and logbook reports. The selected vessels were very dynamic, and were found to target other species such as hake (Merluccius merluccius), John Dory (Zeus faber) and octopus (Octopus vulgaris). Anglerfish landing trends can be explained by changes in abundance, quota availability and shifts/changes in fishing effort. Overall, the dynamics of these vessels varied with area of exploitation, IVQ value and anglerfish total allowable catch (TAC). These results show the influence of different management systems in the dynamics of vessels and the advantage of an IVQ management system, where fishers can spatially and temporally allocate effort. Results also highlight a fishing effort shift towards unregulated species in face of IVQ or TAC restrictions.     

Perceptions and preferences of commercial fishers for dedicated access privilege framework in a multispecies fishery

The decline of the world's fisheries and the inability of traditional management frameworks to maintain them, has led managers to adopt alternative management frameworks. The use of dedicated access privileges have often been shown to have varying popularity among factions within the commercial fishing industry and managers. Here, we examine commercial fishers' preference for alternative management frameworks in the context of a unique multispecies fisheries of the Florida Keys. By surveying commercial fishers, we find that that the size of operation plays no role in affecting fisher perception regarding dedicated access privileges. Furthermore, fishers who are organized are less likely to support dedicated access privilege frameworks. Overall, we do not find enough support in the fishing industry for the implementation of dedicated access privileges in the Florida Keys. These findings can provide inputs in developing effective management plans in the region.     

The structure of tuna access agreements in the Western and Central Pacific Ocean: Lessons for Vessel Day Scheme planning

The tuna industry in the Western and Central Pacific Ocean (WCPO) is one of the largest and most valuable fisheries in the world. Since the 1980s, Pacific island countries have used licensing agreements with foreign fishing interests—known as access agreements—to earn tuna-related revenue and control the environmental impacts of fishing, with only minimal success. To date, there has been little work detailing the structure of access agreements and assessing how this structure relates to economic and environmental outcomes in the sector. This article helps to fill this gap by providing an overview of various access structures and a detailed empirical assessment of how these structures are applied in access agreements between Pacific island countries and the major foreign fishing interests active in the WCPO. This analysis is placed in the context of evolving regional fisheries management structures. The study reveals that while there is no uniform formula for access agreements, each structure is subject to distinct political, economic and environmental considerations that influence outcomes for Pacific island countries. As Pacific island countries develop the mechanism to allocate fishing rights under the new Vessel Day Scheme, drawing on their long history with access agreements will assist efforts to use access to achieve policy objectives. Improved transparency will enable Pacific island countries to identify successes and problems and adapt the Vessel Day Scheme allocation mechanisms accordingly.     

Alaskan fishing community revenues and the stabilizing role of fishing portfolios

Fishing communities are subject to economic risk as the commercial fisheries they rely on are intrinsically volatile. The degree to which a community is exposed to economic risk depends on a community׳s ability to confront and/or alter its exposure to volatile fishery conditions through risk-reduction mechanisms. In this article, economic risk – as measured by community-level fishing gross revenues variability – is characterized across Alaskan fishing communities over the past two decades, and exploratory analyses are conducted to identify associations between community attributes and revenues variability. Results show that communities’ fishing portfolio size and diversification are strongly related to fishing revenues variability. Communities with larger and/or more diverse fishing portfolios experience lower fishing revenues variability. Portfolio size and diversification appear to be related to the number of local fisheries, indicating that communities’ portfolios may be constrained to the set of local fisheries. Hotspots of relatively higher fishing revenues variability for communities in north and west Alaska were identified, mirroring the spatial distribution of fishery-specific ex-vessel revenues variability. This overall pattern suggests that a community׳s fishing portfolio – and hence its exposure to risk – may be “predetermined” by its location, thereby limiting the policy options available to promote economic stability through larger and/or more diverse fishing portfolios. For such communities, diversifying income across non-fishing sectors may be an important risk reduction strategy, provided any potential negative cross-sector externalities are addressed.     

Losing ground: The marginalization of the St. Lawrence eel Fisheries in Québec,Canada

The world׳s eel fisheries are in a state of crisis. While an increasing number of studies have documented the biophysical dynamics of the decrease in eel populations in Canada and around the world, studies documenting fishing practices, fisheries management, and the impact of eel declines on the livelihoods of fishermen are still rare. This paper aims to contribute to this discussion by examining the American eel (Anguilla rostrata) fishery in the St. Lawrence River Estuary, positioning it within larger historical, economic, and socio-environmental contexts. More particularly, it explores the issues these fishermen face as a consequence of the declining eel population, changing management practices, global trends in eel commercialization, and initiatives taken to promote eel fishing and the landscape that surrounds it as an important component of natural and cultural heritage. It is argued that these changes, many of which have been amplified by neoliberal policy shifts, have contributed to the marginalization of eel fishers and are making their future increasingly uncertain.     

ITQs under illegal fishing: An application to the red shrimp fishery in Chile

We study an individual transferable quota system with imperfect enforcement. We apply a model of individual fisherman behavior to the red shrimp (Pleuroncodes monodon) fishery in central-southern Chile. Simulation results suggest that illegal fishing could generate a 21% increase in fishing effort, resulting in a 13% increase in catch and a 2% lower quota price in comparison with the results of a system that operates under perfect compliance. The results are sensitive to changes in the level of fish abundance, total allowable catch, and the design of enforcement to induce compliance.     

Comparative advantage and distant water fishing fleets: The Australian east coast tuna longline fishery

A coastal state benefits from importing the services of a distant water fishing nation (DWFN) fleet if the DWFN has a comparative advantage in exploiting the fishery, based on factors such as market access, costs or technology. The paper compares the activities of the Australian and Japanese vessels in the east coast tuna longline fishery and finds the Australian vessels receive higher prices, have higher costs and use a different technology from the Japanese fleet. These differences suggest a pattern of comparative advantage which can lead to Australia benefitting from importing the services of the Japanese fleet.     

Stated preferences for size and bag limits of Alaska charter boat anglers

Over the last several years, significant regulatory changes related to Pacific halibut Hippoglossus stenolepis have occurred in the for-hire recreational charter boat fishing sector in Alaska. In addition to limited entry restrictions and adoption of a catch sharing plan that provides a formal means of determining allocation between the commercial and charter boat fishing sectors, more restrictive harvest regulations were placed on anglers fishing from charter boats. This article provides insights into how the value anglers place on charter boat fishing is affected by these regulations, principally bag and size limits. Such information is helpful in assessing the trade-offs in economic benefits associated with different regulatory tools used to manage angler harvest levels. Stated preference choice experiment data from a 2012 survey are analyzed using a panel rank-ordered mixed logit model to estimate the economic value, or willingness to pay (WTP), non-resident anglers place on saltwater charter boat fishing trips in Alaska and to assess how changes in characteristics of fishing trips, particularly harvest restrictions related to Pacific halibut, affect this value. The model specification accounts for a wide array of size and bag limit restrictions that have been recently implemented or are under consideration by Pacific halibut fishery managers. The results indicate that very strict harvest restrictions have the effect of driving WTP to zero, while allowing at least one (potentially) large fish to be caught is valuable to anglers. The results also suggest that WTP for fishing trips with bag limits that allow two or more fish to be harvested with no size restrictions on the first fish harvested are not statistically different from the value for trips for larger bag limits or for the case where all the fish in the limit can be any size. This suggests that fishery managers can restrict the size of the second fish in a two-fish bag limit and still maintain economic values for fishing trips.     

Development in fleet fishing capacity in rights based fisheries

Individual Transferable Quota (ITQ) fisheries management systems are supposed to remedy the over-capacity problem associated with traditional command-and-control management systems. This paper provides some insight with respect to the impact of ITQs on vessel numbers in six different countries. The results indicate that the number of vessels was reduced by at least 30% within a few years of the implementation of individual vessel quotas. Thereafter a slow reduction in vessel numbers continued, indicating that it may take time period before over-capacity is fully removed. Moreover, the total effect on vessel numbers is surprisingly similar across countries and fisheries despite different degrees of transferability in the different cases analysed.     

Transition from common to private coasts: Consequences of privatization of the coastal commons

Privatization is often viewed to provide positive stimulus for the economy that can lead to the betterment of society. But when the appropriate governance systems are not functionally in place, the unwanted effects of privatization can have deleterious consequences. This paper highlights the consequences of undesirable privatization and the emergent unwanted privatization tendencies of the coastal commons, particularly in the developing countries such as the Philippines. The lack of coherent policies, standards, and weak enforcement of policies in leasing the coastal commons (e.g. various unregulated aquaculture) in the Philippines in particular, have resulted to alarming displacement, deprivation and marginalization of fishing and farming communities and have degraded many coastal zone areas. In addition, poorly planned coastal tourism and housing development projects in the foreshore areas, inappropriate reclamation of coastal areas, illegal usurpation of indigenous people’s rights over ancestral domain areas, and conversion of fishing and fish farming zones into ecotourism zones further aggravated this scenario. Equitable access to resources is of paramount importance to afford concerned stakeholders greater participation in terms of developing greater capacity for coastal communities to engage and demand for improved coastal governance - an important facet of public administration often identified as one of the challenges in managing the commons. Co-management with an Ecosystem-Based Management approach as core operational mechanism provides opportunities to enhance policy formulation and implementation, secure community safety nets, and facilitate the creation of a level-playing environment that help to prevent the unwanted effects of privatization.     

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.     

Foregone harvests and neoliberal policies: Creating opportunities for rural,small-scale,community-based fisheries in southern Alaskan coastal villages

Neoliberal policies of effort limitation and privatization have reduced commercial salmon and other fishing opportunities available to the coastal, predominantly Alaska Native, villages of southern Alaska. However, there are a variety of circumstances, including the manner in which the current commercial fishery is prosecuted, that lead to surpluses of unharvested salmon, and potentially other species, available in certain areas. This paper will define the concept of “foregone harvests”, discuss the environmental and managerial conditions that lead to “foregone harvests” and describe the possibilities such conditions create for the development of small-scale, local and community-based fisheries. Case studies of possible Huna Tlingit (Hoonah) and Kaigani Haida (Hydaburg) salmon fisheries will be presented. Alternative arrangements of salmon fisheries and institutions in southeast Alaska are presented through case studies of the villages of Yakutat and Metlakatla. These examples demonstrate how such fisheries could be built on local and traditional knowledge, as well as currently used subsistence technologies resulting in new economic opportunities compatible with local cultural patterns and interests and buttressing local identities and commitments.     

The economics of ending Canada's commercial harp seal hunt

The roots of the Canadian harp seal hunt can be traced to the 16th Century. But in the mid-20th century, opposition to the commercial hunt became widespread after television images of seal pups being killed with clubs on the pack ice off the coast of Newfoundland were broadcast around the world. International conservation groups, animal welfare groups, animal rights groups, and foreign governments have been calling for the Canadian government to end the commercial seal hunt on the grounds that it is inhumane and that harvest levels are unsustainable. The Canadian government defends the traditional practices of hunting harp seals, argues that seal pelts are an important source of income for sealers, and insists that the killing methods are humane and that harvest levels are sustainable. Emotions run high on both sides of the debate. The purpose of this paper is to evaluate whether or not there is a purely economic argument for ending Canada's commercial seal hunt. The paper finds that the benefits of ending the commercial hunt exceed the costs, but not unequivocally. However, the paper argues there should be a higher criterion—the Pareto criterion—for ending the commercial hunt; that is the hunt should end only if winners compensate the losers. The paper goes on to argue that an effective way to satisfy this criterion is to introduce a system of individual transferable quotas (ITQs) and let the market reveal the value of the commercial seal hunt. In addition to many other advantages such as improving the safety and efficiency of the hunt, the ITQ market could provide a mechanism by which those willing to pay to end the hunt could do so directly to sealers thereby ensuring that the hunt is scaled back or ultimately ended only when it is economically efficient and unambiguously welfare-improving.     

The demise of the small fisher? A profile of exiters from the New Zealand fishery

New Zealand's exclusive economic zone encompasses a significant fishery that is managed by a market-based quota management system. Since the introduction of this regime in 1986 over 3000 fishers have exited the industry. These exiters are predominantly small-scale fishers. This study profiles a sample of the exiters, using information provided on the Ministry of Fisheries database and through a questionnaire sent to the exiters themselves. The profile includes information on the scale of exiters, their typical methods of fishing, the importance of time and exit price to the exit decision, and post-exit employment outcomes.     

Are input controls required in individual transferable quota fisheries to address ecosystem based fisheries management objectives?

This study examined the use of Individual Transferable Quotas (ITQs) to effectively manage fishing impacts on all ecosystem components, as required under Ecosystem Based Fisheries Management (EBFM) principles. A consequence of changing from input controls to output-based (catch) management is that the control of the regulating authority tends to be reduced, which may affect the outcomes for ecosystem management. This study reviewed the use of input controls across six fishing methods in 18 ITQ fisheries, which have been independently accredited as ecologically sustainable by the Marine Stewardship Council (12 fisheries) or under Australian environmental legislation for Wildlife Trade Operation (six fisheries). Input controls were retained across a range of ITQ fisheries, with non-selective fisheries such as trawl, gillnet and line employing more input controls than selective fisheries such as purse-seine, pot/trap and dredge. Further case-studies confirmed the widespread and recent use of input controls (spatial and temporal closures) with the aim of managing ecosystem impacts of fishing. The retention of input controls, particularly closures affects the security (quality of title) characteristic of the fishing use right and the theoretical ability of fishers to manage their right for their future benefit. The security characteristic is weakened by closures through loss of access, which undermines industry trust and incentive for long-term decision making. By reducing the security of ITQs, individual fisher incentives and behaviour may separate from societal objectives for sustainability, which was one of the foremost reasons for introducing ITQ management.     

US catch share markets: a review of data availability and impediments to transparent markets

A growing number of US fisheries are managed with catch share programs, which allocate exclusive shares of the total allowable catch from a fish stock to individuals, cooperatives, communities, or other entities. All of these catch share programs allow transferability of catch privileges in some form. Information on these transfers, particularly prices, could be valuable to fishery managers and to fishery participants to support management and business decisions and to increase efficiency of the catch share market itself. This article documents the availability and quality of data on transfers of catch privileges in fourteen US catch share programs. These catch share programs include several individual fishing quota (IFQ) programs and a number of programs that allocate catch privileges to self-organized cooperatives. Price information on catch share transfers is found to be limited or unavailable in most US catch share programs. Recommendations are made on how to improve the design of catch share programs and associated data collection systems to facilitate effective catch share markets, collection of catch share market data, and better use of information from catch share markets.     

Spatial conflicts in New Zealand fisheries: The rights of fishers and protection of the marine environment

New Zealand fisheries legislation provides commercial fishing rights to holders of individual transferable quota (ITQ). The settlement of fisheries claims against the Crown by Mäori, New Zealand's indigenous people, brought about the transfer of ITQ holdings to Mäori, and an obligation on the Crown to recognise and provide for indigenous (customary) fishing rights over fishing grounds and other areas that have been of special significance to Mäori. Some types of customary fishing areas exclude commercial fishing and could affect recreational fishing. Fisheries legislation requires that regulatory measures be put in place to avoid, remedy or mitigate the adverse effects of fishing. The Government also aims to protect marine biodiversity by having 10% of New Zealand waters in some form of protection by 2010. The legislative processes for protecting the marine environment and establishing customary fishing areas include assessment of effects on fishing rights. This paper explores the conflicts that arise from legislative obligations to uphold the rights of fishers, to sustain fishstocks and to protect the marine environment. The paper concludes that inconsistent legislative obligations and their disparate processes have led to spatial conflicts and a race for the allocation of space. Legislative obligations need to be integrated to maintain a balance between use of fisheries resources and protection of the marine environment.     

我国海洋渔业地理信息系统发展现状

详细总结了我国海洋渔业地理信息系统的研究与应用现状,远洋渔业地理信息系统主要应用于金枪鱼、鱿钓业和秋刀鱼的资源分布、渔获量与渔场环境关系、渔情预报、渔场图绘制等方面,近海主要用于分析东海渔业资源分布和漂移特征、渔场环境分布、部分种类渔获量分布与环境关系及渔情预报等方面。除渔业资源与渔场领域外,渔业地理信息系统还被应用到渔船跟踪、捕捞违法行为判别、渔业信息发布和水产品查询,以及渔港建设等领域,国内学者在进行渔业地理信息系统技术应用的同时,还注重了其技术的研究及改进。