Fisheries Issues Research Articles

Access as the Means for Understanding Social-Ecological Resilience: Bridging Analytical Frameworks

Social-Ecological Systems (SES) resilience has become the mainstream analytical framework for understanding the interactions between the social and environmental dynamics of change. However, issues around the role of power and agency, which have been described as blind spots by critics, have raised concerns regarding its application to real-world empirical cases. We explore how Ribot and Peluso’s Theory of Access can be applied to address critical theoretical gaps in SES by examining how its structural and relational access mechanisms relate to diversity, feedbacks and connectivity which are central to the dynamics of SES. Testing this through two different case studies, on land use issues in Mexico and marine fisheries in the United Kingdom, we illustrate how an analysis focused on access deepens our understanding of resilience. We argue that the insights provided by the Theory of Access contribute to an improved theorization of the “social” in social-ecological resilience.

Lessons from seabird conservation in Alaskan longline fisheries.

Although bycatch of seabirds and other long‐lived species is a critical conservation issue in world fisheries, case studies documenting significant reductions in the mortality of these low‐productivity species in a fishery are rare. We studied progress toward seabird conservation in the Alaskan longline fisheries, one of the largest and most diverse demersal fisheries. We generated annual seabird bycatch rates in 4 target fisheries and all fisheries combined from 23 years of fisheries observer data. We used 0‐inflated negative binomial models to evaluate variables influencing seabird bycatch per unit effort (BPUE) in 2 target fisheries. Following adoption of streamer lines, at first voluntarily and then mandatorily, seabird BPUE was reduced by 77–90%, preventing mortality of thousands of birds per year. Despite this, BPUE increased significantly in 2 of 4 target fisheries since streamer lines were adopted. Although night setting yielded significant reductions (74–97%) in seabird BPUE and significant increases (7–11%) in fish catch per unit effort over daytime setting, nighttime setting increased the BPUE of Northern Fulmar (Fulmarus glacialis) by 40% and nontarget fish species by 5–17%. Thus, best practices to prevent seabird mortalities in longline fisheries varied by species assemblage and fishery. Our results inform global efforts toward fisheries bycatch reduction by illustrating that successful conservation requires fishery‐specific solutions, strong industry support, constant vigilance in analysis and reporting observer data, and ongoing outreach to fleets, especially to vessels with anomalously high BPUE.

Genetic monitoring of natural sturgeon spawning in the lower Volga for the period 2017-2018

Genetic monitoring of natural sturgeon spawning in the lower Volga for the period 2017-2018

Enhancing fisheries education and research through the Canadian Fisheries Research Network: A student perspective on interdisciplinarity, collaboration and inclusivity

Fisheries involve complex problems not easily addressed by a single discipline, methodology, or set of stakeholders. In 2010, the Canadian Fisheries Research Network (CFRN) was initiated to increase fisheries research capacity in Canada through interdisciplinary and inclusive research collaborations. As post-graduate students in the network, we reflected on the type of training necessary to tackle fisheries problems and reviewed opportunities available at Canadian universities to receive such training. This paper presents an overview of fisheries education currently available in Canada, reflects on our training within the CFRN, and proposes improvements to fisheries education and research. Our review of the subject revealed few dedicated fisheries programs, limited interdisciplinary programs, few specialized fisheries training programs, and a heavy reliance on academic supervisors to secure research opportunities in fisheries. In contrast, the CFRN enhanced our training by deliberately focusing on tools and techniques to address fisheries issues, providing venues to foster interdisciplinary and inclusive research collaborations, and exposing the realities of stakeholder collaborations. We call for post-graduate-level fisheries education and research that is interdisciplinary, collaborative, and inclusive to produce well-rounded scientists and managers, and we suggest ways that universities, researchers, and funding agencies can incorporate these themes into fisheries education and research.

Shark depredation in commercial and recreational fisheries

Shark depredation, where a shark partially or completely consumes an animal caught by fishing gear before it can be retrieved to the fishing vessel, occurs in commercial and recreational fisheries worldwide, causing a range of negative biological and economic impacts. Despite this, it remains relatively understudied compared to other fisheries issues. This is the first review of the literature relating to shark depredation, which also includes an overview of the potential mechanisms underlying its occurrence and options for mitigation. Furthermore, this review highlights key research gaps that remain to be investigated, thereby providing impetus for future research. In total, 61 studies have been published between 1955 and 2018, which include information on shark depredation. These studies recorded quantitative rates of depredation between 0.9 and 26% in commercial and recreational fisheries and during research fishing, identified 27 shark species from seven families that were responsible for depredation and discussed potential factors influencing its occurrence. Information from research into bycatch mitigation and the testing of shark deterrent approaches and technologies is also presented, in the context of applying these approaches to the reduction of shark depredation. This review presents an holistic overview of shark depredation in fisheries globally and, in doing so, provides a central resource for fisheries researchers and managers focusing on this topic to stimulate further collaborative research on this important fisheries issue.

Bycatches of endangered, threatened and protected species in marine fisheries

Bycatch remains one of the most significant fisheries issues in the world and its monitoring and reporting is now expected in many regions. This paper provides a global synthesis of the data that are available on one of the most controversial components of bycatch, that associated with the capture and discarding of endangered, threatened and protected (ETP) species in marine commercial and artisanal fisheries. We examine the available literature regarding estimates for the key taxa in this category of bycatch (seabirds, turtles, sea snakes, marine mammals, sharks, rays and teleosts) and use the data to try to provide a total global estimate. We estimate (albeit quite imprecisely) that at least 20 million individuals of such species are discarded annually throughout the world. However, there remain far too many gaps and uncertainties across fisheries and regions in the information to provide any robustness (or variance) around such an estimate, nor to determine the actual fates of these animals (many may survive). This is exacerbated because: (1) the occurrences of such species are often rare and controversial and so go either unnoticed and/or unrecorded; (2) different levels of protection are afforded to different ETP species in different countries and fisheries and; (3) discarding practices vary greatly across a hierarchy of spatio-temporal scales and according to individual fishing conditions and procedures—the latter affecting actual mortalities. Nevertheless, there have been major initiatives established in recent years to provide better data on such interactions in addition to novel fishing methods and practices that reduce them and also improve the survival of discarded individuals. This paper discusses the data currently available and the quite significant gaps that remain.

ASEAN-FEN INTERNATIONAL FISHERIES SYMPOSIUM – 2017

PrefaceThe 7th ASEAN-FEN International Fisheries Symposium was successfully held in Batu, East Java, Indonesia 7 – 9 November 2017. The conference was hosted by Faculty of Fisheries and Marine Science, Brawijaya University Malang Indonesia. The theme of this symposium was “Projecting ASEAN FEN Plus for Supporting Sustainable Aquaculture, Fisheries and Aquatic Ecosystems”, with focus on the advanced innovation to address to the newly emerged issues in aquaculture, fisheries and aquatic ecosystems for the synergies between socioeconomic development and protecting natural resources and the environment.The conference was attended by over 500 researchers from different countries, who presented and discussed the results of their work within the framework of five main areas: 1. Aquaculture, 2. Sustainable fisheries and management, 3. Seafood processing and biotechnology, 4. Aquatic resources, biodiversity and environment, and 5. Fisheries Economic.List of Organizing committee, Conference Photographs are available in this article.

TECHNICAL EFICIENCY OF FISH AGGREGATING DEVICES ASSOCIATED WITH TUNA FISHERY IN KENDARI FISHING PORT – INDONESIA

Kendari fishing port is one of the biggest tuna fisheries landing in Indonesia. It yearly average tuna production was more than 20 thousand tons. The tuna fishing fleet in Kendari use FAD (Fish Aggregating Devices) as an auxiliary fishing gear. FAD management is major issues in Indonesian tuna fisheries. extensive investment on FAD has led to increase of the juvenile and by catch and also social problem because of the competition. Technical efficiency analysis was done during this study, 2015 catch and logistic data from Kendari fishing port was run using stochastic frontier to obtain the model. Mean value technical efficiency was 0.534. Purse seine the highest mean value compared to other fishing gear. All the variables input show positive relationship to the catch except the days at sea variables, this is a signal that the increasing number of FAD has made the fisherman spend more time at sea it will decrease the technical efficiency. The results support the need of FAD regulation done by the government of Indonesia. Regulation will keep the number of FAD at optimum level and increase the technical effieciency so the fisheries keep gaining the optimum benefit from the resources.

Managing Conflict at Sea: The Case of Norway and Russia in the Svalbard Zone

In 1977, Norway established a maritime Fisheries Protection Zone (FPZ) around Svalbard, yet avoided claiming an outright Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ). A dispute with Russia over the status of the Zone arose. In the late 1990s, Norwegian enforcement of fisheries regulations became stricter, as fish stocks were in decline. This led the Norwegian Coast Guard to attempt to arrest Russian fishing vessels on several occasions, resulting in reactions from Russian fishermen, as well as officials in Murmansk and Moscow. In 1998, 2001, 2005, and 2011 specifically, incidents had the potential to escalate beyond a fisheries issue. Today, an event in the maritime zone is of concern to both Norwegian and Russian authorities. Given the potential volatility of events in the FPZ, how do Norway and Russia manage to avoid escalation in the case of a crisis? Whereas previous scholarly work has explicitly focused on the legal status of Svalbard and its maritime zones, or looked at how Norway manages fisheries in cooperation with Russia, this article brings forth new knowledge by examining the specific incidents in the Zone and placing these in the wider context of conflict theory. Limited to the Norwegian perceptions of the dispute only, this article adds to our understanding of this specific issue of Arctic conflict management and governance. Based on several years of data collection through interviews, the argument put forth is that Norwegian and Russian cooperation is based on both mutual interests and the socializing effects of cooperative mechanisms, which in turn are key to avoid escalation in crisis-scenarios. In sum, we need to recognise how a combination of economic interests and the effects of socialisation have enabled Norway and Russia to keep conflict levels low, when incidents at sea have occurred.

Penanggulangan Penangkapan Ikan secara Ilegal di Perairan Provinsi Aceh

Countermeasure against illegal fishing in Aceh water territory has not yet run effectively as expected in accordance with the Law Number 45 of 2009 on Fisheries. This research aims to identify the policies of the local government relating to the countermeasure of illegal missing the mentioned territory. Data were collected through library research on reliable sources such as books, journals and other scholary works. In addition, field works foe collecting primary data have also been conducted through interview with relevant informen and respondents. It is found that the local government has shown necessary efforts in preventing and combating illegal fishing by issuing regulation concerning fishery issues and making coordination with relevant parties the Navy, Office of Maritime Affairs and Panglima Laot. Nevertheless, more efforts are needed including the issuance of the more specific regulation on illegal fishing which can address the case of illegal fissing by foreign fishing vessels. This is important since the existing regulation can only deal with the case of illegal fishing carried out by local fishermen with regards to illegal fishing gear and fishing permits.

PEREMPUAN DAN INTERNET DALAM PENINGKATAN EKONOMI KELUARGA

In addressing the problem of poverty, the media also has a very important role. In addition, with media, especially the internet, we can find out information about the weather and the sea and fishing information globally accessible. Further explained that the resources of this example is FIGIS (fisheries global information system) that provides a range of statistical information such as fisheries, fish distribution maps by species, issue and topic of the actual fisheries, aquaculture, marine fisheries, and fishing technology. The data is available anytime and anywhere needed. Based on the background is exactly the service activities based on this urgent research to be conducted. The activity goal is to provide knowledge for women and families of fishermen on the media, especially the Internet and equip the women and families of fishermen to learn new media like the internet. The target audience of the utilization of the internet is for girls and coastal fishing families who live in the city of Bengkulu Malabero coastal areas totaling 10 people who have a product that can be sold in the market. The activities are lectures, discussions and simulations use the internet with the ultimate goal the establishment of a blog that can be used to sell their products. Keywords: Internet, women, economics, blogs, information

Introduction to the themed issue - Poststructural approaches to fisheries

This themed issue of papers for Maritime Studies emerges out of a special session of the MARE 2015 conference held in Amsterdam. The aim of this Introduction is to provide a brief background to poststructural scholarship drawing on examples and cases from research on fisheries. We argue that a poststructural sensibility has made an important impact on scholars interested in fisheries issues even though it is not normally framed as such. An additional goal of this short introduction is to introduce the papers in this special issue of Maritime Studies and to situate them within the broad and heterogeneous field of post-structural approaches to fisheries issues.

Fisheries issue in the Central Arctic Ocean and its future governance

The Central Arctic Ocean (CAO) is a global commons and fishes in the CAO are common property resources. If humanity does not manage this region well, it will lead to a “tragedy of the commons.” However, the two existing means of commons’ governance, privatisation or government control, are not appropriate for the CAO. According to my research, CAO fisheries management will most likely come out of a process of self-organisation. The openness of the CAO, the imbalance of powers, interests and responsibilities among the states that are involved; are likely to lead to a process of self-organised governance of the CAO fisheries. There are four stages in the process: competition, synergy, establishment of governing principles and mechanisms, and expanding and evolving influence. The likely outcome of CAO fisheries governance will be the result of gamesmanship among the parties as no one actor is in a dominant position.

Spatial Overlap of Grey Seals and Fisheries in Irish Waters, Some New Insights Using Telemetry Technology and VMS.

Seals and humans often target the same food resource, leading to competition. This is of mounting concern with fish stocks in global decline. Grey seals were tracked from southeast Ireland, an area of mixed demersal and pelagic fisheries, and overlap with fisheries on the Celtic Shelf and Irish Sea was assessed. Overall, there was low overlap between the tagged seals and fisheries. However, when we separate active (e.g. trawls) and passive gear (e.g. nets, lines) fisheries, a different picture emerged. Overlap with active fisheries was no different from that expected under a random distribution, but overlap with passive fisheries was significantly higher. This suggests that grey seals may be targeting the same areas as passive fisheries and/or specifically targeting passive gear. There was variation in foraging areas between individual seals suggesting habitat partitioning to reduce intra-specific competition or potential individual specialisation in foraging behaviour. Our findings support other recent assertions that seal/fisheries interactions in Irish waters are an issue in inshore passive fisheries, most likely at the operational and individual level. This suggests that seal population management measures would be unjustifiable, and mitigation is best focused on minimizing interactions at nets.

Transboundary Fisheries Science: Meeting the Challenges of Inland Fisheries Management in the 21st Century

Managing inland fisheries in the 21st century presents several obstacles, including the need to view fisheries from multiple spatial and temporal scales, which usually involves populations and resources spanning sociopolitical boundaries. Though collaboration is not new to fisheries science, inland aquatic systems have historically been managed at local scales and present different challenges than in marine or large freshwater systems like the Laurentian Great Lakes. Therefore, we outline a flexible strategy that highlights organization, cooperation, analytics, and implementation as building blocks toward effectively addressing transboundary fisheries issues. Additionally, we discuss the use of Bayesian hierarchical models (within the analytical stage), due to their flexibility in dealing with the variability present in data from multiple scales. With growing recognition of both ecological drivers that span spatial and temporal scales and the subsequent need for collaboration to effectively manage heterogeneous resources, we expect implementation of transboundary approaches to become increasingly critical for effective inland fisheries management.

Structural Constraints and Enablers to Community Food Security in Nova Scotia, Canada

ABSTRACTAs one output of a large participatory action research project, this article presents an empirically grounded analysis of constraints and enablers to community food security (CFS) in the province of Nova Scotia, Canada. Our objective is to lay the groundwork for identifying strategic intrasectoral and cross-sectoral opportunities to further CFS. Theoretically, our research is informed by neo-Gramscian theories of the forces that enable sociopolitical change in the political economy of food systems and is grounded in the principles of participatory action research. The analysis is based on 41 interviews and a stakeholder gathering with people representing public sector, private sector, and civil society organizations working on food, poverty, health, agriculture, and fisheries issues in Nova Scotia.

Integrating Role-Play with Case Study and Carbon Footprint Monitoring: A Transformative Approach to Enhancing Learners' Social Behavior for a More Sustainable Environment.

Learners were separated into groups representing the interests of parties that typically negotiate environmental affairs in real world scenarios (conservationists, scientists, politicians, NGOs, stakeholders), and tasked with preparing role-play simulations using a variety of flipped learning techniques. Learners’ carbon footprints were monitored pre and post intervention, and CO2 emission scores were used as a proxy for their behaviour towards the environment. Five role-play simulations were run overall. These were integrated with case studies associated with fisheries issues, and climate change. Anonymous participant surveys indicated that learners responded positively to the intervention, and participants’ CO2 emission scores improved significantly (T1,59 = 2.723, p = 0.009). In the context of environmental sciences, learners that engage in the integrated role-play and case study approach may benefit from flipped learning techniques to prepare their simulations, and gain confidence from self-actualizing moments of achievement when they realize an improvement in their environmental behaviour.

Stakeholders’ Views on Management Arrangements: A Case of Kingfish Fishery in the Sultanate of Oman

This paper exemplifies a primary step towards eliciting primary and secondary stakeholders’ views on management issues pertaining to kingfish fishery in Oman, and potential options for effective management of the fishery using questionnaire surveys and focus group interviews. There was consensus from stakeholder groups which included fishers, fishery managers, and fishery scientists that the current stock condition is not biologically sustainable. It is found that fishing effort control and technical measures are preferred to catch control by both groups. The role of mass media and the traditional institution in communicating fisheries issues are found to be relatively minor. Although the overall rating on the comprehensiveness of the proposed plan is promising, there are significant differences between the two groups with regard to legislative arrangements (χ2 = 24.793, p-value = 0.000), management goals (χ2 = 16.206, p-value = 0.001), operational objectives (χ2 = 19.884, p-value = 0.000), performance indicators (χ2 = 15.524, p-value = 0.001), and measures (χ2 = 13.483, p-value = 0.004). Policy implications of the key findings are discussed in both national and regional contexts. Management authorities can use these findings to design an appropriate plan of actions for achieving sustainability in this fishery.

For Cod and Country: Cod Fishermen and the Atlantic Dimensions of Sectionalism in Antebellum America

The fisheries of the north Atlantic were important components of antebellum American politics and diplomacy that witnessed a debate over competing visions of American nationhood. This article examines the ways in which the image of the New England cod fisherman was deployed in the political rhetoric of antebellum America. While regularly celebrated across the union as a patriotic figure on the frontline of national defense, the humble fisherman became part of sectional rhetoric as fissures along East-West and North-South axes threatened to destabilize a nation still seeking to define itself. Upending notions that the North-South divide was inevitable, or even predictable, this example shows that well into the 1850s the political life of the American fisherman was debated along East-West lines. It was only in the mid-1850s that the issue fell victim to the rancor of the ongoing contention of slave and free, demonstrating just how complete the fracture of the Second Party System was. This underappreciated element of sectional politics in antebellum America is only evident when viewed through the optic of the maritime world. During these years the United States was a maritime nation whose most important lifeline to the outside world were those individuals who served aboard ships. While historians have used international and global perspectives to good effect in analyzing the Civil War, this article demonstrates how the decades preceding that conflict can likewise benefit from a wider lens. The fisheries issues illustrates the benefits of looking east to the Atlantic, not solely west to the territories, in exploring this most fractious period of the nineteenth century.

Legal Framework and Mechanism of Marine Fisheries Subsidies in the Aspects of International Trade and Sustainable Development

Issues in fisheries have been regulated in various international conventions. The United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea 1982 (UNCLOS 1982) has builta regime in the field of conservation and management of fishery resources based upon maritime zones or fish species that exist and available in this zone. However, UNCLOS 1982 only focuses on the issue of fisheries in the Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) and the high seas, thus it was not sufficient to overcome the problems of high frequent of fishing in maritime zones which are fully subject to the jurisdiction of coastal states, such as in the Inland waters, archipelagic waters and the Territorial Sea. This article aims to examine the legal framework and mechanisms of fisheries subsidies in the aspects of trade and sustainable development. In this article, discussion would carried out in order to examine the legal framework and mechanisms of marine fisheries subsidies that are implemented with the principles of fair-trade and sustainable development, both in the international level, as well as in the national level. Thus, this research is expected to be able to bridge the interests of developed countries and developing countries, especially Indonesia, in order to achieve fair trade in the field of fisheries and resource utilization of sustainable fisheries.