Abstract
This paper is an analysis of the relationship between the concepts of fisheries–science partnership (FSP) and fisheries co-management (FCM), using a case study of recent EU work on discard survival. Are FSP and FCM entirely different forms of joint activity, or is FSP a form of FCM or a means of preparing the ground for FCM? And is the recent EU work on discard survival a form of FSP, or of FCM, or both? A questionnaire was sent out by email in 2015 to 13 people who were involved in the discard survival work, and eight responses were received that covered eight projects in seven countries (Belgium, England, Denmark, France, Norway, Sweden, and the Netherlands). Our main findings are fourfold. First, while FSP and FCM are different forms of joint activity, they are both partnerships. Second, FSP may serve as a precursor or preparation for FCM. Third, the EU discard survival assessment work contains elements of both FSP and FCM, but is mainly a FSP exercise and falls far short of FCM. Nevertheless, fourth, this joint work alongside many other FSP initiatives undertaken under the auspices of the Common Fisheries Policy (CFP) (e.g., the GAP projects) has improved relations between fishers, scientists, and managers, and this may contribute to a modification of the CFP’s largely top-down decision-making system.
Highlights
The idea of using the data to explore the relation between fisheries–science partnership (FSP) and FDC came later, and the first author was recruited to review the literature on FSP and fisheries co-management (FCM), and interpret the data obtained from the discard survival project fieldwork in light of this review
This gave confidence that the practices adopted . . . were representative of commercial practices”; “For all practical challenges, the fishing industry together with other partners, do find solutions jointly”; “The crew helped a lot with the operations”; “The fishing industry is involved in designing monitoring units which are subject to discussion by fishermen themselves”), proposed technical solutions to problems (“Industry was included from the beginning with the development of new solutions”), and agreed the setting of objectives
This paper set out to examine whether the EU rapid research exercise on discard survival is an example of fisheries–science partnership (FSP) or fisheries co-management (FCM), or both
Summary
FSP is itself a form of FCM, in that it entails joint research undertaken by fishers and scientists together that is often initiated, funded, and monitored by government, and feeds directly into fisheries management decision-making [1]. This paper examines the concepts of FSP and FCM to determine the theoretical relationship between them, and applies those concepts to a case study of EU work on assessing discard survival rates. The importance of this issue is partly conceptual—to clarify the meaning of the concepts of FSP and FCM—and partly practical—to contribute to policy debates about whether the hierarchical structure of the EU’s Common Fisheries Policy (CFP) might be moving towards a more participative form of management
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