A state-level restrictive policy as a potential trigger to discuss collaborative actions towards more sustainable shrimp fisheries on the southern coast of Brazil

Abstract

Worldwide environmental impacts derived from bottom trawling, such as bycatch and habitat loss, have been widely discussed by fishers, scientists, and other stakeholders. A strategy to mitigate such impacts was adopted in the Rio Grande do Sul state (RS) in southern Brazil and involved an increase in the trawl exclusion zone (TEZ). Even though this intervention was implemented collaboratively by RS stakeholders, it was widely criticized by the fishing sector (mainly by shrimp fishers from other states), because of the associated loss of access to fishing areas within the extended exclusion zone. The TEZ law has increased conflicts between fishers from neighboring states and prompted meetings and discussions between fishers and policymakers at state and federal levels. Considering that Brazilian bottom-trawl fisheries are data-limited and that the current management scenario is focused on target species (e.g., shrimp fisheries), we believe that facilitating collaborative efforts between all stakeholders towards co-management of fisheries is necessary and possible. This approach could avoid negative social and economic impacts, and we propose four key directives to broaden the debate: 1. Establishment of local working groups; 2. Data acquisition and analysis within a bycatch co-monitoring program; 3. Designation and/or implementation of closed fishing seasons; and 4. Implementation and assessment of technologies to reduce bycatch. These directives might contribute to improving the legal framework and ecological status of shrimp fisheries (and their associated bycatch) along the southern Brazilian coast. By assuming a multi-stakeholder technical contribution system that embraces a regional co-management action, we could provide a model for areas and/or countries that lack fishery-related information and enhance the potential for sustainable and economically appropriate decision making.