The Punta Allen cooperative as an emblematic example of a sustainable small-scale fishery in the Mexican Caribbean

Crisol Méndez-Medina,Susannah R Mccandless,Birgit Schmook

doi:10.1186/s40152-015-0026-9

Crisol Méndez-Medina, Susannah R Mccandless + Show 1 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.1186/s40152-015-0026-9

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Abstract

Abstract We present an institutional ethnography and historical case study of the Vigía Chico fishing cooperative, located in the community of Punta Allen within the Biosphere Reserve of Sian Ka’an, México. The top producer of spiny lobster (Panulirus argus) in the state of Quintana Roo for over 30 years, this cooperative has been claimed as an example of a sustainable artisanal fishery. To better understand and assess this success story, we performed an in-depth study of multiple factors to analyze their influence on the cooperative’s success. The indicators selected were level and form of social organization, resilience to socio-environmental perturbations, changes in fishing gear, and the fishing concession as avenue to cementing institutional success. We conducted ethnographic fieldwork over five months, complemented by an in-depth analysis of the cooperative assembly’s minutes. We found that the knowledge the cooperative acquired of the functioning of Mexican public policies was a factor in their success. Cooperative leaders were able to translate that knowledge in ways that benefitted the cooperative, enabling them to build a set of policy-responsive operational rules that could be effectively applied to artisanal fisheries more broadly. The isolated conditions of the area and the presence of natural perturbations such as hurricanes forced the community to increase their willingness to cooperate, and improved their capacity to respond as a group to perturbations. These successes in turn demonstrated the value of cooperative approaches to achieve individual and collective livelihood goals, within and beyond fishing. Such approaches have been further enhanced by the incorporation of academic knowledge and scientific techniques. We conclude that Punta Allen is a successful example of a community that has managed to creatively engage public policy instruments and translate them into effective local practices, enabling organizational persistence despite repeated changes in policies governing fisheries in Mexico.

Highlights

In Latin America, most artisanal fisheries are degrading rapidly, provoking widespread concerns about overexploitation of fisheries resources (Defeo and Castilla 2005)
Case study examples from Latin America illustrate the benefits of such systems, such as the Seris in Sonora, Mexico (Basurto et al 2012; Orensanz et al 2013), and the Juan Fernández Archipelago lobster fishery (Jasus frontalis) in Chile (Orensanz et al 2013)
Demarcation of the Sian Ka’an Biosphere Reserve began in 1982. It was gazetted in 1986, in a process led by the Research Center of Quintana Roo (CIQROO) with support from the National Council of Science and Technology (CONACYT)

Summary

Introduction

In Latin America, most artisanal fisheries are degrading rapidly, provoking widespread concerns about overexploitation of fisheries resources (Defeo and Castilla 2005). Many of these fisheries began as open access regimes under national jurisdiction. Concerns over how to manage fisheries resources sustainably have resulted in intensive research interest in successful artisanal fisheries (Defeo and Castilla 2005; Gallardo et al 2011; Gutiérrez et al 2011; Orensanz et al 2013). Examples of less successful rights-based artisanal fisheries include that for the sea urchin (Loxechinus albus) in Chile (Defeo and Castilla 2005), and the Galapagos sea cucumber (Isostichopus fuscus) of Ecuador (Orensanz et al 2013)

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