Abstract
In most developing coastal countries, the artisanal fisheries sector is managed as a common pool resource. As a result, such fisheries are overcapitalized and overfished. In Ghana, in addition to anthropogenic factors, there is evidence of rising coastal temperature and its variance, which could impact the environmental carrying capacity of the fish stock. This study investigates the effect of climate variation on biophysical parameters and yields. Our results indicate that the rising temperature is decreasing the carrying capacity. As a result, an optimum tax on harvest must reflect climate variability, as well as the congestion externality.
Highlights
In spite of the plethora of policies aimed at sustaining capture fish stocks around the world, evidence abound that most stocks are heavily overexploited [1,2]
Since pelagic stocks targeted by artisanal fishers feed on planktons that depend on seasonal upwelling, it is likely that the rising coastal temperature is impacting the catch per unit effort
(1) extends the existing surplus production function to account for the impact of changes in atmospheric temperature and its variance on the environmental carrying capacity of artisanal fish stock; (2) estimates the biophysical parameters employing the generalized maximum entropy (GME)
Summary
In spite of the plethora of policies aimed at sustaining capture fish stocks around the world, evidence abound that most stocks are heavily overexploited [1,2]. The existing regulations include a ban on the use of light aggregation equipment, which involves shinning light in the ocean, when the moon is out, to attract fish and increase harvest; a ban on the use of mesh sizes smaller than an inch in stretch diagonal; and a ban on the use of explosives in fishing These regulations aim at limiting fishing efforts which is on the rise. Since pelagic stocks targeted by artisanal fishers feed on planktons that depend on seasonal upwelling, it is likely that the rising coastal temperature is impacting the catch per unit effort. Using time series data on artisanal marine fishing in Ghana (1972–2007), this study (1) extends the existing surplus production function to account for the impact of changes in atmospheric temperature and its variance on the environmental carrying capacity of artisanal fish stock; (2) estimates the biophysical parameters employing the generalized maximum entropy (GME).
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