Fisheries Management System Research Articles

Research Mapping of Fisheries Resource Management in Coastal Areas: A Bibliometric Analysis

This study conducts a comprehensive bibliometric analysis of the literature on government budget efficiency. This bibliometric analysis explores the evolution and integration of themes within fisheries management research from 1959 to 2024. Utilizing VOSviewer for keyword co-occurrence and network visualization, the study identifies dominant themes such as "fishery management system," "conservation," and "sustainability," along with their interconnections and shifts over time. The analysis highlights a multidisciplinary approach, integrating ecological, economic, and technological aspects to address the challenges of sustainable fisheries management. The prominence of terms related to management strategies and environmental conservation reflects a global commitment to sustainable practices. Collaborative patterns among leading researchers and the evolution of research themes underscore the dynamic nature of this field, emphasizing adaptive management strategies that are informed by both socio-economic and ecological dynamics. The findings suggest that the ongoing integration of advanced technologies and interdisciplinary approaches is crucial for developing effective fisheries management practices that can adapt to environmental uncertainties and ensure the sustainability of both marine resources and dependent communities.

Framework assessment of sustainability: Methodology for evaluating the conformance of fishery and aquaculture management systems to FAO guidelines

Sustainability is about meeting the needs of current generations without compromising those of future generations. For fished and aquacultured products, sustainability is often gauged on an individual fishery or farm basis but can be driven by a well-designed and implemented regulatory management system, or set of laws, rules, and policies promulgated by a governmental entity. To achieve global coverage via current assessment approaches requires enormous effort and resources due to the sheer number of individual operating units. System assessments are well established in assuring seafood safety, but much less so in regard to sustainability. This paper presents a tool to measure sustainability based on the prevailing regulatory management system and invites other researchers and practitioners to gauge the applicability of the methodology to new contexts. Evaluating how management systems support sustainable practices is key for assessing current reality and planning change. The methodology presented is based on international criteria for sustainability set forth in United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) guidelines for the ecolabelling of fish and fishery products as well as aquaculture certification. The assessment tools are the distillation of qualitative criteria found within the FAO guidelines into simple propositions called “Topics of Pertinence” that enable a straightforward cross-checking of whether the requirements and provisions of regulatory management systems reflect broadly accepted sustainability criteria in fisheries and aquaculture sectors. Assessments document what management systems aim to do via laws, regulations, and policies, and verify mechanisms within the systems that support implementation and compliance. While other sustainability assessments exist, the methodology described here is unique in that it is the only process that provides a system-based approach targeting higher management levels, which can increase global coverage of sustainability assessment from the current lower-tiered approach of certifying at individual production entities.

Real time Cloud based fishes health monitoring using IoT.

This work is based on a prototype model for the Fishery Management System with the help of Internet of Things i.e., IOT. The proposed system works on IOT & provides real-time monitoring of the fishery system. With the help of various hardware & software devices like Sensors & the Arduino Cloud, data from the fishery system can be collected and analysed using the Cloud which also helps in maintenance of the fishes from time to time. This also helps in creating awareness about the fish whenever necessary. Along with IOT, Water Level Sensor, Temperature Sensor & pH Sensor is also used to measure the water level, temperature level and get the pH values in the system. The system can be made automatic as well as configured according to the requirement for the survival of the fishes. The Node MCU ESP8266 helps in collecting the information through the sensors & display it in the Cloud which can be accessed from Smartphones, PCs, and Tablets etc.

Enhancing the adaptive capacity of fisheries to climate change: Bridging academic theory and management practice through practitioner interviews

Climate change is dramatically altering the environmental context in which marine resources are harvested and managed. A growing field of academic literature has begun to explore the adaptive capacity of fishers and managers to respond to this change, but much of this field is abstract and theory-driven. Therefore, it is unclear whether this literature accurately reflects the adaptation priorities of fishery management practitioners, or whether there are gaps in the literature that these practitioners could fill with on-the-ground knowledge. Second, even if these principles of adaptive capacity are perfectly aligned with management practitioners’ priorities, it is unclear to what extent these principles are actively considered in the decision making process, and if not, why. This study seeks to address these questions by confronting fisheries professionals with academic ideas around adaptive capacity through a series of semi-structured interviews with federal fishery managers and scientists whose work informs decision making in the United States regional fishery management system. The study then uses these interviews to identify three low-cost, high-impact action items that could make concepts from the academic literature more accessible and useful to these practitioners and expand the literature by incorporating practitioners’ expertise. These action items are: 1) distinguish adaptive capacity from adaptive management, 2) use practitioner insights to contextualize the elements of adaptive capacity within the constraints and opportunities of governance systems, and 3) expand academic research to explicitly consider the capacity to adapt on appropriate timelines given the scale and pace of systemic change.

Practice of Territorial Use Rights in Fisheries in Coastal Fishery Management in China: A Case Study of the Island Reefs Fishery Lease Policy from Shengsi County in Zhejiang Province

Coastal fisheries are vital for food supply, employment, and social stability. However, overfishing is a common problem, often attributed to open access. Territorial Use Rights in Fisheries (TURFs) have gained popularity as a tool to improve the sustainability of coastal fisheries, but research on TURFs in China is limited. This paper examines the island reef fishery lease policy implemented in Shengsi County, Zhejiang Province, within the Ma’an Islands National Marine Special Reserve. The policy leases the use of island reefs to a collective, aiming to address overfishing and resource degradation by establishing fishing area boundaries and limiting the number of users and usage time. Technically, it is an application of TURFs, and it represents a shift from traditional fishing licenses to collective compliance. This experience has disrupted the existing top–down fishery governance structure and signifies a transition to a rights-based fishery management system in China. Through a comprehensive investigation and analysis of the policy’s implementation, this research identifies the factors contributing to its flaws. These include the inadequate provision of national and local government policies, insufficient support for policy implementation from fishery management authorities, and the limited involvement of fishermen’s organizations. To enhance coastal fishery management, we propose that the Chinese government should build upon existing foundations by clarifying fishing rights through central and local laws and policies. Additionally, there is a need to strengthen data monitoring of coastal fisheries, conduct multidisciplinary research to improve the allocation mechanism of fishing rights, adopt diverse fishery management approaches to enhance supervision capabilities, establish a collaborative governance mechanism, and foster coordination and cooperation between grassroots fishermen’s organizations and government departments.

Catch yield and selectivity of a modified scallop dredge to reduce seabed impact.

Global scallop fisheries are economically important but are associated with environmental impacts to seabed communities resulting from the direct physical contact of the fishing gear with the seabed. Gear modifications attempting to reduce this contact must be economically feasible such that the catch numbers for the target species is maintained or increased. This study investigated the outcome of reducing seabed contact on retained catch of scallops and bycatch by the addition of skids to the bottom of the collecting bag of scallop dredges. We used a paired control experimental design to investigate the impact of the gear modification in different habitat types. The modified skid dredge generally caught more marketable scallops per unit area fished compared with the standard dredge (+5%). However, the skid dredge also retained more bycatch (+11%) and more undersize scallops (+16%). The performance of the two dredges was habitat specific which indicates the importance of adjusting management measures in relation to habitat type. To realize the potential environmental benefits associated with the improvement in catchability of this gear modification, further gear modification is required to reduce the catch of undersize scallops and bycatch. Furthermore we advocate that technical gear innovations in scallop dredging need to be part of a comprehensive and effective fisheries management system.

Transition and adaptation: An analysis of how professional fishermen change their practices

The succession of crises in the French professional fishing sector raises the question of the sector's capacity to adapt to changes in its global environment, and of the possibilities for fishermen to change their practices. Through interviews with fishermen and representatives, 5 ideal types of individual transitions were described, as well as two examples of changes in the fisheries management system. Some changes can be characterised as adaptations following a shock, rather than real voluntary and planned transitions. Voluntary individual transitions do exist, however, initiated by a variable trigger factor, but they require a high degree of introspection about personal and professional expectations. These examples of transitions are made possible by the rare synchronisation of external events and various characteristics of the project owners and remain overall a niche phenomenon in the current situation. There is little scope for transition in the sector, mainly because of the difficulty of accessing production rights and the rigidity of management systems. To help the sector evolve and adapt to a changing macro-environment (organisational, environmental, societal, energy, etc.), transition levers can be mobilised at organisational, political, financial, technical, social and societal levels. The age structure of ships and people will probably be the mainstay of a major reconfiguration of the sector in the short term.

The impact of ocean warming on selected commercial fisheries in New Zealand

AbstractWarming oceans affect the growth, reproduction and location of fish species. Using a bioeconomic framework, we estimate the relationship between sea surface temperature (SST) and the catch of de facto open‐access commercial fisheries of flatfish, trevally and jack mackerel in New Zealand. Assuming either a logarithmic or quadratic relationship between the SST and the carrying capacity of the fish stock, we consider three fishing methods (bottom trawl, set net and midwater trawl) and two measures of effort (count and duration). We show that ocean warming results in an increase in catch for all species if we assume a logarithmic relationship, with the highest marginal product of SST () for jack mackerel caught using midwater trawl. The highest marginal revenue product (computed by the MPSST, current price and fished area) is found for flatfish caught by set net. However, when assuming a quadratic relationship, there is a threshold above which catch starts to decrease, with the maximum catch of species ranging between 10 and 12.2°C. These results also vary spatially, with higher values of MPSST observed in areas closer to the South Pole. Our findings are relevant for any review of fisheries management systems in response to ocean warming.

Climate adaptation depends on rebalancing flexibility and rigidity in US fisheries management

Abstract Fisheries face unprecedented environmental change. An important aspect of resilience to this change is the adaptive capacity of managers and stakeholders to respond to new conditions. A growing academic literature has demonstrated the value of fostering this adaptive capacity and highlighted key elements of fisheries social-ecological systems that can promote it. However, it is unclear to what extent these abstract academic ideas around adaptive capacity are relevant and valuable to on-the-ground resource managers, and if so, whether there are aspects of the literature that particularly resonate with their needs. Here, we compare academic concepts of adaptive capacity to the ways that management practitioners conceptualize and implement these ideas in practice, elicited through interviews with key professionals in United States federal fishery management bodies. Practitioners overwhelmingly cited flexibility to respond to change as the most consistently important element of adaptive capacity. Yet, they also detailed how the U.S. fishery management system routinely limits and constrains the flexibility of managers and stakeholders. Seeking out opportunities that enhance flexibility without jeopardizing other key aspects of adaptive capacity could increase management’s adaptive capacity to global change in the USA and elsewhere.

Adapting the marine stewardship council's risk-based framework to assess the impact of towed bottom fishing gear on blue carbon habitats.

Wild capture fisheries are of economic and social importance, providing a primary source of protein to people globally. There is a broad research base on the environmental impacts of fishing gears and processing methods yet, the impact on the global CO2 budget is less well studied. Evaluating the risk that wild capture fisheries pose to ecosystem health is vital to sustainably managing fishing practices to meet increasing global nutritional needs and reverse declines in marine biodiversity. At the same time meeting net-zero ambitions by reducing direct and indirect GHG emissions is vital. Ecological risk assessments, trait-based assessments, and vulnerability assessments have long supported fisheries management systems globally but do not yet provide any representation regarding the impacts that fishing gears have on the ability of the habitat to capture and store carbon. Considering the importance of accessibility and transparency in approaches necessary for fisheries sustainability certifications, this paper describes a method to integrate habitat carbon capacity attributes into the Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) Consequence and Spatial Analysis (CSA) framework. Applying the CSA carbon extension developed herein produces different CSA risk scores compared to the MSC CSA that does not account for carbon. This has potential consequences for certification schemes as carbon becomes more important in the fisheries sustainability conversation. The CSA carbon extension tool developed here is an important first step in incorporating carbon indicators into evaluations of fisheries that consider fishery carbon impacts.

Artisanal fisher knowledge on the impacts of destructive and illegal practices on the Southern Coast of Bahia, Brazil

Destructive fishing practices (DFP) and illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) activities result in significant marine ecosystem effects, such as habitat destruction, biomass reduction, bycatch, and waste of resources. They also generate socioeconomic impacts on artisanal fisher coastal populations. Both DFP and IUU are linked to fisheries management system failures and the impossibility of marine surveillance. In this context, from an Ethnoecological approach, the aim of this study was to analyze the local ecological knowledge of fishers from Ilhéus (Bahia), Northeastern Brazil, regarding DFP and IUU fisheries. A total of 59 interviewees pointed to decreased resource catches in recent years, citing increasing fishing efforts and certain types of gear as the main reasons. They also claim that local fishers and fishers from other Brazilian regions have been using banned equipment, such as compressors and lobster nets. In turn, although permitted by law, shrimp trawling and gillnet fishing were reported as being excessively applied and identified as destructive fisheries. Surprisingly, longline fishing was one of the most reported as responsible for excessive catches and for causing decreases in Common dolphinfish catches. This study reinforces the importance of including the knowledge of local fishers and their participation to contribute to fisheries management and resource conservation. In this context, some recommendations are highlighted to reduce the impacts of harmful practices and improve regional fisheries management, summarized as: (i) policy improvement; (ii) fishing monitoring; (iii) incentives; and (iv) enforcement.

Development of a scale to measure fishers’ attitude towards responsible fishing

The right to fish carries along with it an obligation to do fishing responsibly which is the fundamental principle of the FAO Code of Conduct for Responsible Fisheries (FAO-CCRF). There exist challenges in implementation of responsible fishing practices globally and hence appropriate communication, knowledge mobilisation and education across stakeholders are to be encouraged to achieve effective fisheries management systems. Understanding the attitude of fishers is important in achieving the goal of conservation and sustainable use of the oceans, seas and marine resources. Attitude act as the determinant of converting covert behaviour into overt action. It is rooted in motivation, which provides a meaningful background for individuals’ overt behaviour. Perspective of fishers with respect to sustainable fishery systems is an important aspect to be studied in fishery governance. To measure this psychological construct, we need to use, standardised scales. There is no standardised scale available for measuring attitude of fishers towards responsible fishing. This paper discusses the development of Responsible Fishing Attitude (RFA) scale using Likert type scale development methodology. Conceptual dimensions of responsible fishing were delineated for attitude statement generation. The final Likert scale was having 13 statements with moderately high reliability and validity and can be administered to respondents on a 5-point continuum. Keywords: Fishery extension, Likert scale, Responsible fishing, Scale development

Comparing Fishing Technology of Korea and Indonesia: An Evaluation of the Efficiency, Quality, and Sustainability of Fishery Resources

This article compares the fishing technologies used by Korea and Indonesia in efficiency, quality, and sustainability. The author uses the literature study method by collecting secondary data from various sources, such as scientific journals, government reports, mass media, and official websites. The analysis shows that Korea has more sophisticated, modern, and integrated fishing technology than Indonesia. This technology allows Korea to catch fish more efficiently and produce high-quality fishery products. In addition, Korea also has a fishery resource management system that is better than Indonesia. Korea implements various policies and regulations to maintain the sustainability and productivity of fishery resources. Indonesia still needs to face various problems and challenges in the fisheries sector, such as overfishing, fish theft by foreign vessels, damage to the marine environment, and low-quality fishery products. Indonesia also needs more research and development of fishery technology. This article recommends that Indonesia increase cooperation with Korea in fisheries technology through the Marine Technology Cooperation Research Center (MTCRC). This cooperation will help Indonesia improve its fishing technology and fisheries resource management system.

Stepwise Analysis of the Ecosystem-based Fisheries Assessement and Management Approach Linked to the DPSIR Framework

In this study, the traditional DPSIR (Driver, Pressure, State, Impact, Response) framework was extended to use for the analysis of the assessment and management of fisheries resources, by adding measures(M) as another new element to be DPSIRM. Marine fisheries are usually carried out to obtain foods from the seas and oceans, which are the main driver(D) of the framework. The fishing operations affect the marine ecosystems as pressures(P). Such pressure will cause the state(S) of ecosystem component, such as changes in abundance and distribution of fish, and deterioration of the marine environment. These changes will have impacts(I) in the productivity and economy of fisheries. In response(R) to these impacts, various scientific management advice will be proposed, which will be developed into measures (M), such as policy-making or legislation. This DPSIRM framework was used to analyze and evaluate the ecosystem-based fisheries assessment and management (EBFAM) approach. An EBFAM approach with a link to the DPSIRM framework makes it easy to identify each element of DPSIRM that corresponds to a step in the EBFAM process. Thus, in the event of uncertainty in the fisheries assessment and management system, based on a feedback system that uses the framework as a complementary and synergistic approach. The EBFAM approach with links to the DPSIRM framework can ensure that each step of the assessment and management process is in the science domain or policy domain, which can enhance and strengthen the Science-Policy Interface(SCI) highlighted by the UN

Towards vibrant fish populations and sustainable fisheries that benefit all: learning from the last 30years to inform the next 30years.

A common goal among fisheries science professionals, stakeholders, and rights holders is to ensure the persistence and resilience of vibrant fish populations and sustainable, equitable fisheries in diverse aquatic ecosystems, from small headwater streams to offshore pelagic waters. Achieving this goal requires a complex intersection of science and management, and a recognition of the interconnections among people, place, and fish that govern these tightly coupled socioecological and sociotechnical systems. The World Fisheries Congress (WFC) convenes every four years and provides a unique global forum to debate and discuss threats, issues, and opportunities facing fish populations and fisheries. The 2021 WFC meeting, hosted remotely in Adelaide, Australia, marked the 30th year since the first meeting was held in Athens, Greece, and provided an opportunity to reflect on progress made in the past 30years and provide guidance for the future. We assembled a diverse team of individuals involved with the Adelaide WFC and reflected on the major challenges that faced fish and fisheries over the past 30years, discussed progress toward overcoming those challenges, and then used themes that emerged during the Congress to identify issues and opportunities to improve sustainability in the world's fisheries for the next 30years. Key future needs and opportunities identified include: rethinking fisheries management systems and modelling approaches, modernizing and integrating assessment and information systems, being responsive and flexible in addressing persistent and emerging threats to fish and fisheries, mainstreaming the human dimension of fisheries, rethinking governance, policy and compliance, and achieving equity and inclusion in fisheries. We also identified a number of cross-cutting themes including better understanding the role of fish as nutrition in a hungry world, adapting to climate change, embracing transdisciplinarity, respecting Indigenous knowledge systems, thinking ahead with foresight science, and working together across scales. By reflecting on the past and thinking about the future, we aim to provide guidance for achieving our mutual goal of sustaining vibrant fish populations and sustainable fisheries that benefit all. We hope that this prospective thinking can serve as a guide to (i) assess progress towards achieving this lofty goal and (ii) refine our path with input from new and emerging voices and approaches in fisheries science, management, and stewardship.

Fishers who don't fish

AbstractIn 2018, an unprecedented red tide prompted Chile's Ministry of Health to close fisheries throughout the country's southern Aysén Region. The disaster heightened the precarity of “paper fishers,” or those who seldom fish but deftly navigate Chile's neoliberal fisheries management system. Amid the crisis, these fishers performed valuable distributive labor. They connected benefits from transferable fishing quotas to community‐based networks, persuaded officials to recognize additional claimants, and redistributed cash in their communities. This enabled fishers to access public funds when fishing was impossible and strengthened community solidarity in the face of precarity. Yet it also required that claims for financial compensation be legible to state officials, and it prevented political actions that would have disrupted the state‐backed aquaculture industry, despite the latter's contribution to the red tide. Thus, neoliberal distributive programs that depend on the commodification of nature simultaneously benefit rural communities in crisis and facilitate the displacement of beneficiaries.

The Challenges of Sustainable Fish Farming Culture in North-East of Nigeria

The study was conducted in North East Zone of Nigeria where fishing has been the occupation of the inhabitants. The study focused on the challenges of sustainable fish farming culture in the study area. Data for the study was obtained from both primary and secondary sources through a public participation and stakeholders’ interview with the application of focus group discussion. The data collection for the research work was carried out within the period of 1st to 31st March 2023. Primarily, conservative qualitative method with snow-ball technique was applied and information was elicited from the respondents on challenges of sustainable fish farming culture. The study revealed the challenges associated in sustaining fish farming culture involves conflict associated with fisheries management system, the use of crude implements, the system is self-subsistence, over-exploitative, degradable, limitation of cultural adaptation and lack of support system. Recommendations were made for formulation of policy framework that will transformed and sustained the fish farming culture.

The FishPath approach for fisheries management in a data‐ and capacity‐limited world

AbstractSuccessful fisheries management systems tend to be underpinned by harvest strategies, specifying formally agreed data collection systems, assessment approaches and management measures used to regulate fishing pressure. While harvest strategies can be effective even in data‐ and capacity‐limited (DCL) situations, their development remains challenging in such contexts. We present a process and decision‐support tool, FishPath, to guide the identification of suitable harvest strategy component options given often debilitating conditions: (i) resource limitations and lack of technical management capacity; (ii) ‘uniqueness’ of DCL fisheries; (iii) the concept of harvest strategies is unfamiliar to managers and scientists, and the universe of options is hard to navigate; and (iv) the lack of an effective participatory process to identify solutions tailored to local contexts. These conditions can lead to either management paralysis or generic solutions that may be poor fits to specific conditions. The FishPath Tool uses a diagnostic questionnaire that elicits the key characteristics and specific circumstances of a fishery. It compares these with the requirements of alternative options from an inventory of possible harvest strategy components, identifies where these requirements are met and provides customised, transparent guidance on the appropriateness of component options of a harvest strategy, specific to the fishery of interest and its governance context. The FishPath Process is a facilitated multi‐stakeholder, participatory engagement process aimed to set fisheries on the path to develop a harvest strategy. The FishPath Process and Tool combine to ensure a bottom‐up, documented, transparent, replicable and efficient process.

Estimating economic-based target reference points for key species in multi-species multi-métier fisheries

Consideration of economic outcomes is commonplace in most fisheries management systems globally, although only a few jurisdictions have adopted an economic objective as the primary target for fisheries management. Such an objective has been adopted for Australia's federally managed fisheries, with maximum economic yield (MEY) identified as the primary management objective. Correspondingly, target reference points defined in terms of biomass (i.e., BMEY) are used in harvest control rules. In the absence of explicit BMEY estimates, proxy estimates based on maximum sustainable yield (i.e., BMSY) are used. Identifying BMEY in multi-species fisheries is complicated as most stock assessments are undertaken at the individual species level, but economic activity occurs across species. This is further complicated when different fishing activities using different fishing gears and targeting practices (i.e., métiers) are present in a fishery. We employ an age-structured bioeconomic model to estimate BMEY for key species in a multi-species, multi-métier fishery. We find that optimal biomass levels are substantially higher than those assumed under the current proxy-based system, and that the economic targets are sensitive to prices and fishing costs, both of which change over time.

Transformation of the Rrussian fisheries management system

The article considers the system of management transformation in the fisheries complex of the Russian Federation from administrative and command management in the conditions of the USSR to the present day and reveals their cardinal difference. Firstly, there are no powers of the current management structure – the Federal Agency of Rosrybolovstvo in such activities as manufacturing, transportation, storage and trade, that is, the logistics chain «production – counter» is artificially broken. Secondly, industrial relations in these areas are regulated by different departments. It is proposed in the current conditions in the management system to introduce the functions of the chief coordinator of various departments on issues of the fisheries complex and assign them to the Federal Agency Rosrybolovstvo. The creation of a comprehensive system of coordination of all interested departments, responsibility and regulation of relations to achieve final results at the federal level will not require large costs, and the positive result is obvious. The authors propose, taking into account the ongoing transformation in the Russian fisheries complex, the formation of a new organizational and managerial structure – an industrial economic ecosystem, which is a kind of complex that is characterized by self-organization, self-regulation and self-development under the influence of various external factors and the environment. The lack of necessary and reliable information can become a brake on the development of digitalization of the fisheries complex. Currently, VNIRO is dynamically developing a digital information and analytical platform. Giving the platform the status of a project office in the future will make it possible to cover the entire array of necessary information and areas of analysis under the auspices of the Federal Agency Rosrybolovstvo in a unified manner with other interested management bodies, enterprises, unions, public organizations and regional authorities. The ecosystem is well synchronized with the modern digital economy, as a result of which the interaction of companies moves to a qualitatively new level, which will allow for more concentrated achievement of local at the enterprise level or strategic goals of Russia’s economic development. Thus, the introduction of new principles in the management system aimed at the final result affects the entire federal management structure of the fisheries complex.