Sustainability of Fisheries Under Climate Change Pressures

Abstract

Climate change is a growing factor across the world’s marine fisheries, affecting them in varying, but widespread, ways that affect individuals, stocks, populations, communities, food webs, and large ecosystems. As such, observed and projected changes in the yield, distribution, quality, and composition of fish stocks are evident across many measures. In fisheries, the vulnerability is affected by impacts on fishing techniques and changes in fish distribution. Other than ecological impacts, climate change has economic consequences on fisheries, such as increased costs and damage. Research emphasizes the spatial issues regarding the redistribution of benefits and losses in fisheries due to species migration and ecosystem shift. Climate change also causes shifts in marine habitats and oceanographic conditions, which affect marine species’ biogeochemical cycles, trophic flows, life histories, productivity and distributions. Considering the complexity and multidimensionality of the effects of climate change on fisheries, policymakers must have a holistic understanding of ecological and socioeconomic implications to engage in effective policy dialogue and adaptation. Multidisciplinary research into the effects of climate change on fisheries is essential, as is creative policymaking to counter the negative aspects, and stakeholder involvement to ensure that policies are correctly implemented. By combining scientific knowledge with the practice of adaptive management, it is possible to prevent climate change from destroying marine ecosystems and harming livelihoods dependent on fisheries.