Considering the Source: Testimony versus Data in Regulations Surrounding Gulf and South Atlantic Trap Fisheries

Abstract

The source of a problem influences the source of information we use to address the problem. However, the source of information we use can also influence our conceptualization of the problem. Just such a paradox faces fishermen in the Gulf and South Atlantic trap fisheries. Competition and conflict among commercial trap fishermen, other types of fishermen (e.g., longliners and divers), recreational fishermen, and environmentalists occur throughout South Atlantic and Gulf waters, yet an actual accounting of episodes of environmental destruction, theft of traps, and so on, has been difficult to develop. In many cases, documentation has become largely irrelevant. People perceive theft, destruction, or resource depletion to be occurring, and the strength of their belief prompts them to political organization and action. Using information from North Carolina, the Caribbean, and the Florida Keys, this article discusses the ways in which various sources of information have influenced the management of trap fisheries in the South Atlantic and Gulf of Mexico waters. Implications for other policy domains are discussed, [fisheries, regulation, testimony, science, farming systems, natural resources]