Science-based coastal management in Fiji: Two case studies from the NGO sector

The effectiveness of coastal management in developing countries is widely perceived to be inhibited by a lack of scientific data on the coastal zone. To try to fill this need for information, donors and big international non-governmental organizations are increasingly initiating large-scale, science-driven conservation programs, with the goal of creating and using management relevant transdisciplinary datasets. In Oceania, these programs are entering a context where local ecological knowledge is already informing existing community-based approaches to coastal management. This paper examines two large-scale programs in Fiji, the Marine Management Area Science initiative and the Vatu-i-Ra and Cakau Levu Reefs Seascape Project, and offers insight relevant to the planning and implementation of similar programs where local management systems are already in place. Research methods used to examine the programs included document analysis, direct observation, and semi-structured interviews with key stakeholders over multiple field visits to Fiji in 2009 and 2010. Results suggest that as donors, non-governmental organizations, and partners move forward in implementing these programs, there must be active steps taken to bridge boundaries between disciplines and among knowledge systems, evaluate the added value of science for all stakeholder groups, and build opportunities for datasets to be used after donor funding ends.     

Towards the economic viability of local seafood programs: Key features for the financial performance of community supported fisheries

Community supported fishery (CSF) programs are emerging as appealing alternatives to large-scale industrial fisheries for some seafood consumers and commercial fishers. While CSFs provide many social, economic, and environmental benefits to their local communities, the associated financial costs can make it difficult for such programs to remain solvent. The goal of this research was to identify specific features that influence the financial performance of CSF programs. Using data collected online and from surveys of past and current North American CSFs, this research identified a combination of three key features associated with positive profit margins: engaging in social media, offering a retail option, and having a fisher as a founding member. The potential reasons behind the influence of these features on financial performance is explored, and recommendations for how they can be incorporated into CSF programs are presented. It is hoped that through integrating these features, prospective and currently operating CSFs could potentially improve their long-term financial performance, enabling them to focus on their non-financial goals and increase their overall economic viability.     

Do fishing vessel buyback programs work: A survey of the evidence

Vessel and license buyback programs are being used increasingly as a tool to reduce overcapacity in fisheries. This paper examines buybacks programs in a number fisheries around the world, in order to evaluate their effectiveness in achieving their objectives. We show that, though the objectives are usually similar, the design of different buyback programs varies widely with important ramifications. Although proper design can improve the performance of buyback programs, we conclude that buyback programs are generally not an effective way to address the problems they are meant to solve.     

Hatchery programs,stock enhancement,and cost effectiveness: A case study of the Albemarle Sound/Roanoke River stocking program 1981–1996

Fish hatchery programs commonly are used to enhance depleted fish populations. While these programs are highly valued by the public, most likely due to their nonrestrictive approach to restoring a fishery, the effectiveness of these programs has been often questioned. This study investigates economic and ecological effectiveness of the Albemarle Sound/Roanoke River (AR) striped bass stocking program from 1981 to1996 as a case study.     

Integrated theory of coastal management regarding protection of beaches and dunes

State adoption and implementation of coastal management program components regarding the protection of beaches and dunes vary among the coastal states with federally-approved coastal zone management programs. The level of development of state coastal management programs is influenced by a variety of political, economic, social, and environmental factors. Ordinary Least Square (OLS) regression analyses were employed to determine which of these state factors influence the level of development of coastal management programs. The state factors associated with highly developed coastal management programs were identified as pro-environmental, activist citizenry and history of adopting environmental policies.     

The restoration of fishing services and the conveyance of risk information in the Southern California Bight

Southern California's marine areas are heavily contaminated with dichloro-diphenyl-trichloroethane (DDT) and polychlorinated-biphenyls (PCBs), and fish consumption advisories (FCAs) have been issued throughout the region. Between 2002 and 2003, the Montrose Angler Survey, a large-scale survey of subsistence anglers, was developed and implemented on site in Orange and Los Angeles counties. This survey was intended to assist natural resource trustees in the development of restoration programs that will address injuries to natural resources and restore lost economic services for anglers, but the data were never fully analyzed. The trustees have shown a clear preference for ecological restoration programs that may take years to improve fishing services. In contrast, this analysis, which includes a random-parameter fishing site choice model, demonstrates that simple, inexpensive programs such as better signage to warn of FCAs and transportation to clean sites have the potential to yield substantial benefits quickly. This paper also focuses on how different ethnic minority groups are affected by FCAs, and determines how best to communicate risk information and change fishing behavior through outreach programs.     

Marine science education--Some inequities

Many well-established and strong marine programs are offered at institutions which have preserved the concept that such studies are to be conducted only at the graduate level, while others have broken from this heritage and are offering undergraduate programs. This article discusses the difficulties that arise as a result of this dual approach for a student who graduates from one program and wishes to advance his education at another institution.     

Fish harvest tags: An alternative management approach for recreational fisheries in the US Gulf of Mexico

This paper explores the potential adaptation of harvest tags to the Gulf of Mexico recreational reef fish fishery. The discussion addresses conceptual, theoretical, and practical issues surrounding the application of harvest tags, as well as challenges and opportunities related to the design of tag programs. A review of hunting and fishing tag programs around the world and analysis of Gulf recreational fisheries suggests that tags have the potential to improve control over total catches, increase economic benefits and provide better information for fishery management. Results also provide insight into potential use of fish tags in large-scale recreational fisheries nationwide.     

Marine protected areas: a tool for integrated coastal management in Belize

Management of the Belize Barrier Reef was originally envisioned through the creation of marine protected areas. However, the influence of land-based activities was not accounted for in Marine Protected Area (MPA) programs. Therefore focus was shifted to an integrated approach via Integrated Coastal Management (ICM). The Belize ICM process has evolved into a system of coordination through the fostering of multi-sectoral linkages for integrated management of coastal resources. Marine protected areas were included in the ICM program as tools for achieving biodiversity protection and management of sensitive habitats. The ICM process has resulted in greater coordination and consultation in decision making for coastal resource issues, the MPA program however has not evolved with the trend of greater community involvement in MPA management. The greatest challenges to MPA and ICM programs in the next 10 years are: improved linkages between the two, fostering of community participation in management, broadening of the scope of ICM to watersheds and ocean governance, and sustainable financing for both programs.     

Tradable permit programs: What are the lessons for the new Alaska halibut catch sharing plan?

To address long-standing allocation conflicts between the Pacific halibut commercial fishing sector and recreational charter (for-hire) sector in Alaska, an Alaska halibut catch sharing plan (CSP) is being implemented in 2014 that has a provision allowing the leasing of commercial individual fishing quota to recreational charter businesses. This one-way inter-sectoral trading allows for the charter sector to increase its share of the total allowable catch while compensating commercial fishermen. This type of catch shares program is novel in fisheries. In this paper, the literature on non-fisheries tradable permit programs (TPPs) that have similarities to the Alaska halibut CSP program is examined. Several successful TPPs are discussed, including ones from emissions trading programs, water quality trading programs, water markets, and transferable development rights programs. They are then evaluated in terms of their similarities and differences to the Alaska CSP program. Characteristics not part of the current CSP that other TPPs have used and that may increase the likelihood for the CSP to be effective in achieving its primary goals (if they are implemented) are identified, such as allowing more flexible transfers (e.g., internal transfers), intertemporal banking, cooperative structures, and multi-year leasing.     

Lessons learned from investing in marine and coastal management initiatives in the East Asian Seas

The concept that underlies the interventions of the Global Environment Facility (GEF) International Waters Program is adaptive management at the Large Marine Ecosystem (LME) scale across the sequence of interventions from assessment and analysis to development of regional strategic action programs and national implementation of action plans to address transboundary environmental concerns. The GEF has provided grants to recipient countries in the East Asian Seas region covering five LMEs since the early 1990s and amounting to about US$200 million. This paper analyses GEF support to the Seas of the East Asian Region to draw lessons for future investments in LME management. To identify investment gaps and the overarching drivers of environmental degradation across scales, transboundary diagnostic analysis of LMEs need to be linked to analysis of existing investment flows. Most funding for implementation of strategic action programs should be targeted at the national level, as interventions at this level are on average leveraging much more co-financing to GEF projects than regional interventions. Better coordination and agreed procedures and methodologies among different regional entities, programs and projects are necessary in regions, such as the EAS, with multiple regional initiatives at different scales. Better coordination of financial support to programs and projects operating at different scales would also strengthen the extent to which ecosystem-based management could be applied through better harmonization of management frameworks and tools for marine and coastal management from local to national to regional levels. Strategies towards achieving sustainable financing should be encouraged and implemented to ensure adaptive management and achievement of goals and targets under SAPs.     

Stakeholder consultation during the planning phase of scientific programs

Stakeholder consultation is being adopted as standard practice in the planning and management of natural resource management programs. While the utility of stakeholder participation has been investigated for the evaluation and implementation phases of natural resource management programs, few studies have examined the utility of stakeholder consultation during the initial phases of developing such programs. This paper presents a case study from a project developing a marine and coastal monitoring program for the Pilbara and Kimberley region of northern Western Australia. Via a series of workshops held in the region, stakeholders were asked to prioritise future research needs using several voting procedures. During the analyses of the results from the different voting procedures, it became apparent that there were high levels of inconsistency, poor correlation, and contradiction, between participants’ responses. Despite the rigour of the selection process used to identify ‘suitable’ stakeholders for the workshops, these results show that stakeholders did not have the technical or broader contextual knowledge about marine ecosystems to effectively and objectively contribute to the research prioritisation and planning process. Based on the outcomes of this study, we argue that project designers need to be clear about why they are involving stakeholders in a project, particularly in light of the costs involved (financial, time, resources, costs to the stakeholder) in stakeholder consultation. Stakeholder involvement may be appropriate in later stages of developing natural resource management programs (implementation and management), however, stakeholder involvement is not appropriate in the initial phases of such programs, where scientific expertise is essential in formulating scientific concepts and frameworks.     

Deep Seabed Mining: Past Failures and Future Prospects

The first attempt to exploit deep-sea manganese nodules ended in failure as a result of the collapse of world metal prices, the onerous provisions imposed by the U.N. Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), and the overoptimistic assumptions about the viability of nodule mining. Attention then focused on Co-rich manganese crusts from seamounts. Since the mid-1980s, a number of new players have committed themselves to long-term programs to establish the viability of mining deep-sea manganese nodules. These programs require heavy subsidy by the host governments. Au-rich submarine hydrothermal deposits located at convergent plate margins are now emerging as a more promising prospect for mining than deep-sea manganese deposits.     

Deep Seabed Mining: Past Failures and Future Prospects

The first attempt to exploit deep-sea manganese nodules ended in failure as a result of the collapse of world metal prices, the onerous provisions imposed by the U.N. Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), and the overoptimistic assumptions about the viability of nodule mining. Attention then focused on Co-rich manganese crusts from seamounts. Since the mid-1980s, a number of new players have committed themselves to long-term programs to establish the viability of mining deep-sea manganese nodules. These programs require heavy subsidy by the host governments. Au-rich submarine hydrothermal deposits located at convergent plate margins are now emerging as a more promising prospect for mining than deep-sea manganese deposits.     

Catch share programs in the Western Pacific—A solution in search of a problem?

The movement toward catch shares by NOAA Fisheries and fisheries managers worldwide responds to dysfunctional fisheries plagued by a host of interrelated problems including radically shortened seasons, a race to fish, supply gluts, lowered product quality, increased bycatch, safety issues, excess capacity, and lack of profitability. However, the NOAA Catch Shares Policy recognizes that catch shares are not appropriate for every fishery, and others have agreed that the success of catch shares programs depends on their fit with ecological, economic, and social characteristics. This article describes the characteristics of the Hawaii-based deep-set longline fleet, identified by NOAA Fisheries as a possible candidate for catch shares because it operates under a bigeye tuna quota instituted by the Western and Central Pacific Fisheries Commission. One of the main concerns in the fishery is the potential for closing during the holiday season, a culturally important time for fish consumption in Hawaii. An evaluation of the fishery suggests that many of the problems leading to development of catch shares programs in other fisheries are not present, but that some warning signs exist which could be addressed by catch share programs or other management alternatives.     

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.     

Integrated coastal zone management towards Indonesia global ocean observing system (INA-GOOS): Review and recommendation

Indonesia as an archipelagos country consisting of more than 17,508 islands has a challenging problem in terms of island management and the provisional ocean services to the coastal community. The population growth (especially in coastal areas) followed by declining natural resources caused by overfishing and overexploitation is one of the biggest concerns both for the central and the local governments in Indonesia. Integrated Coastal Zone Management (ICZM) is one of the attempted solutions to overcome these difficulties, however, it is known to be unsatisfactory even after several programs under ICZM have been developed and implemented. Therefore, further facilitation of ICZM programs is necessary in order to benefit to Indonesian governmental management of their islands, coastal areas and oceans. In doing so, ICZM will also make a significant contribution towards the implementation of the Indonesia Global Ocean Observing System (INA-GOOS). This paper aims to review ICZM activities in Indonesia to obtain a better understanding of, and the need for ICZM implementations in support of their policy, sustainability and decision-making process in the direction of INA-GOOS. It is expected that the ICZM implementations will have a high impact on INA-GOOS programs.     

Catch share programs in developing countries: A survey of the literature

The literature on catch shares is dominated by analyses of programs in developed countries. To address this research gap, this paper identifies and discusses programs in developing countries. The paper also investigates differences between countries that have and have not implemented programs across a number of relevant dimensions, including governance and resource value, and characterizes the relationship between catch share type (e.g., quota-based or space-based systems) and the species characteristics. The paper identifies programs in about 20 percent of coastal and developing countries and finds that countries with catch shares have higher governance rankings, stronger economies, more valuable fishery export industries, and fewer people employed in fisheries. For example, the average governance effectiveness rank is 38.7 for all coastal and developing countries and 60.8 for countries with quota-based fishing rights. Species managed under quota-based systems are also found to have the potential for strong recruitment externalities. The results support ideas from the fisheries economics literature on the pre-conditions that are more likely to lead to the adoption of a catch share program.     

Policy-relevant assessment of community-level coastal management projects in Sri Lanka

Community-level coastal management programs are being introduced in some countries as a practical strategy to respond to conditions of poverty and unsustainable resource use practices. Two recently developed Special Area Management (SAM) programs developed in Sri Lanka are part of this international trend. These two SAM programs were assessed to identify planning and early management issues that may be relevant to future projects. This paper examines general issues in assessing community-level projects. The particular focus is on a few issues of general relevance: community participation in the planning process; the adequacy of the boundary; quality of the technical analysis; adequacy of resource management activities; transparency of management decisions; community acceptance of the program; and sustainability of resource management activities.     

The perils and promise of futures analysis in marine ecosystem-based management

Ecosystem-based management is now widely accepted as the standard strategy for achieving sustainable delivery of marine and estuarine ecosystem services. The ubiquity and rate of change in marine ecosystems necessitate incorporating visions of future ecosystem states into ecosystem management strategies. Creating visions of the future enables policy makers to set realistic objectives and targets, and to explore the consequences of potential management decisions on ecosystems under multiple potential scenarios of change. Several classes of futures are used in marine ecosystem management program, and three are highlighted here: visioning, predictive models, and scenario analysis. Each approach is briefly described, and their use in current marine ecosystem management programs in North America is reviewed. In particular, the importance of using scenario analysis to identify and incorporate the influence of exogenous drivers into management strategies is highlighted. Then, some of the perils and promises associated with each approach are described, and a way forward is proposed that incorporates multiple types of future envisioning approaches into management programs. Key contributions of future analyses include highlighting connections and trade-offs among ecosystem components, setting realistic targets, and incorporating exogenous drivers, and their uncertainties, into ecosystem management programs.