Management Strategy Evaluation Research Articles

Ecosystem-Based Harvest Control Rules for Norwegian and US Ecosystems

Management strategy evaluation (MSE) provides a simulation framework to test the performance of living marine resource management. MSE has now been adopted broadly for use in single-species fishery management, often using a relatively simple ‘operating model’ that projects population dynamics of one species forward in time. However, many challenges in ecosystem-based management involve tradeoffs between multiple species and interactions of multiple stressors. Here we use complex operating models, multi-species ecosystem models of the California Current and Nordic and Barents Seas, to test threshold harvest control rules that explicitly address the linkage between predators and prey, and between the forage needs of predators and fisheries. Our investigation led to three main results. First, consistent with studies based on single-species operating models, we found that compared to constant F=FMSY policies, threshold rules led to higher target stock biomass for Pacific hake (Merluccius productus) in the California Current and mackerel (Scomber scombrus) in the Nordic and Barents Seas. Performance in terms of catch of these species varied depending partly on the biomass and recovery trajectory for the simulated stock. Secondly, the multi-species operating models and the harvest control rules that linked fishing mortality rates to prey biomass (zooplankton) led to increased catch variability; this stemmed directly from the harvest rule that frequently adjusted Pacific hake or mackerel fishing rates in response to zooplankton, which are highly variable in these two ecosystems. Thirdly, tests suggested that threshold rules that increased fishing when productivity (zooplankton) declined had the potential for strong ecosystem effects on other species. These effects were most apparent in the Nordic and Barents Seas simulations. Further developing and testing such ecosystem-level considerations can be achieved with the Atlantis end-to-end ecosystem models applied here, which have the added benefit of tracking the follow-on effects of the harvest control rule on the broader ecosystem.

Evaluating management strategies for marine mammal populations: an example for multiple species and multiple fishing sectors in Iceland

A management strategy evaluation (MSE) is used to estimate success at achieving conservation goals for marine mammals while also aiming to minimize impacts on commercial fisheries. It is intended to improve understanding of US import rules that require countries exporting fish and fish products to the USA to adhere to marine mammal bycatch standards “comparable” to those used by the USA. The MSE framework is applied, for illustrative purposes, to export fisheries in Iceland that impact harbor porpoises (Phocoena phocoena), harbor seals (Phoca vitulina), and grey seals (Halichoerus grypus). Several management strategies are evaluated. The harbor porpoise population is estimated to be close to or above its maximum net productivity level (MNPL) and, according to the model, will continue to increase even if current levels of human-caused mortality are unchanged. In contrast, the grey seal and harbor seal populations are below MNPL, and bycatch mortality in the lumpfish (Cyclopterus lumpus) fishery will need to be reduced to allow them to recover to MNPL.

Energy modeling and quality management systems in high-rise construction

Currently, there was a contradiction between practice that recognizes the objective need for a periodic assessment of the efficiency of the quality management system in the organizational structures of construction companies and the state of the scientific and methodological base for resolving these issues. International experience in the implementation of objects using 3D printing technology was studied. Issues of energy modeling are also discussed in the paper. The advantages and disadvantages of various methods in the manufacture of building structures by the layered method are revealed. The technology of layer-by-layer construction of high-rise buildings will provide a solution to affordable housing issues, as well as quick restoration of houses in case of natural disasters (floods, earthquakes, fires and other emergencies). The need has arisen for creating an automated system for choosing rational organizational and technological solutions based on modern design technologies. The most crucial factor in the modeling of key performance indicators of the system-target approach to estimation of the sustainability level of net assets on the basis of IPSAS is a multicriterial evaluation of the basic management strategy for quality system elements used in operational and strategic planning projects in construction operations.

Involving stakeholders in the evaluation of management strategies for shortfin mako (Isurus oxyrinchus) and blue shark (Prionace glauca) in the Spanish longline fisheries operating in the Atlantic Ocean

Shortfin mako (Isurus oxyrinchus) and blue shark (Prionace glauca) are a relevant bycatch in the Spanish surface longline fisheries that operate in the Atlantic Ocean. Concern has been raised after the 2017 and 2019 shortfin mako evaluations for the Northern Atlantic stock. It stated the population being overfished and suffering from overfishing. Also blue shark is subject to high extraction rates in the Atlantic Ocean. Few data and uncertainty in assessment results suggest that further management strategies could be taken into account for both species. This study evaluated different fisheries management strategies for shortfin mako and blue shark in the Atlantic Ocean from the stakeholders' perspective. Personal interviews were conducted with Spanish fishermen and surveys were sent to scientists and non-governmental organizations (NGOs). Local Ecological Knowledge was considered to be useful as fishermen possess unique expertise based on their continued interaction with the species and environment. Interviews allowed understanding the fishermen's perception on variations of stock abundance, distribution patterns, size of capture and seasonal fluctuations for both species. SWOT (Strength, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats)-analysis was used to study the different management measures. Main management strategies proposed by all stakeholders to reduce the bycatch of both species were spatial-temporal closure, minimum size and quotas. The Sole Bank was suggested as a temporarily closed area to protect blue shark juveniles during the summer months. The participation of stakeholders enriched the knowledge available and provided a broader data set now available for decision makers in the corresponding regional fisheries management organization (RFMOs).

Where you trap matters: Implications for integrated sea lamprey management

Barriers and pesticides have been used in streams to control sea lamprey in the Laurentian Great Lakes for nearly 70 years. Considerable effort has been spent to develop additional control measures, but much less effort has gone toward identifying how or where additional control measures might be cost-effectively integrated into the sea lamprey control program. We use a management strategy evaluation model in Lake Michigan to identify the stream types that would be most suitable for deploying traps to remove adults prior to spawning and estimate the likely impact on adult sea lamprey abundance in subsequent years under several trapping scenarios relative to status quo abundance. The greatest reduction in lake-wide adult sea lamprey abundance predicted by the model resulted when removing adult sea lampreys from streams that are difficult for control program personnel to treat with lampricide because lampricide applications would be required less frequently. Additionally, targeting streams which experience regular sea lamprey recruitment and streams with low adult sea lamprey density should result in reduced lake-wide abundance if trapping costs are relatively low or removal is high. Our results provide direction on where to trap and why, and indicate that trapping may be a valuable part of an integrated sea lamprey control approach advancing the goals of the Great Lakes Fishery Commission.

Quantitative evaluation of statin effectiveness versus intolerance and strategies for management of intolerance

Background and aimsThere is disquiet about statin effectiveness and side effects in both the medical and lay media. MethodsWe searched the literature for reports on the incidence of statin intolerance (SI) in which control rates of similar events were also recorded. The number of people who must receive treatment (NNT) to prevent one atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (ASCVD) event at 5–50% 10-year risk and LDL cholesterol 2–7 mmol/l was compared with the number of those who would experience harm attributable to statin (NNH). Using a similar method, the effectiveness of various strategies to overcome SI in preventing CVD was then compared. ResultsObservational studies with non-randomised control groups report higher rates of statin adverse events than randomised trials. Overall, at least 75 patients must be treated for one to experience a side effect. In contrast, the NNT to prevent one ASCVD event with statins as monotherapy or in combination with other cholesterol-lowering medications to achieve at least 50% decrease in LDL cholesterol and <1.8 mmol/l was between 3 and 61, depending on risk and LDL cholesterol. NNH for adverse events of severity equivalent to ASCVD was >750 (<0.1333%).When SI is encountered, the most effective current management for most patients in terms of ASCVD reduction is to rechallenge with low dose potent statin and then up-titrate until the cholesterol target has been achieved with, if necessary, the addition of ezetimibe 10 mg daily. ConclusionsThe most severe complication of SI is discontinuation of effective cholesterol-lowering treatment in patients who, by virtue of their CVD risk and cholesterol level, might otherwise benefit.

Rebuilding depleted fisheries towards BMSY under uncertainty: harvest control rules outperform combined management measures

AbstractRebuilding depleted fisheries towards sustainable levels, such as BMSY, is challenging under uncertainty. Although a substantial amount of research has highlighted the importance of accounting for uncertainty in fisheries management, tactical measures remain to be identified. We consider two approaches to achieve this goal: (i) the naive maximum sustainable yield (MSY) approach, combining management measures based on effort control, catch quotas, and spatial–temporal closures, and (ii) the harvest control rules (HCRs) approach, developing HCRs based on short-term or long-term targets. A suite of strategies is developed accordingly and tested with management strategy evaluation for their performance under four sources of uncertainty that may negatively impact management effects, including reduced recruitment strength, increased natural mortality, inadequate implementation error, and varying levels of temporal effort aggregation. Combining management measures using the naive MSY approach is found to perform poorly in tackling uncertainty. Complex HCRs that account for both short-term and long-term BMSY targets can mitigate the adverse effects of uncertainty. The rebuilding target can be only achieved by compromising yield, especially when uncertainties with natural mortality and recruitment are present. Strategies based on catch quotas are prone to all sources of uncertainty, indicating latent risks in many current management practices.

Impact of Preemptive Therapy for Cytomegalovirus on Hospitalizations and Cost after Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation.

Cytomegalovirus (CMV) viremia occurs in 40% to 80% of CMV-seropositive (R+) recipients of allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation (HCT). The preemptive therapy (PET) strategy has reduced the risk of CMV end-organ disease (EOD) and associated mortality but may lead to substantial healthcare resource utilization (HCRU) and costs. Real-world data on the economic impact of PET is relevant for the evaluation of alternative strategies for CMV management. We examined the impact of clinically significant CMV treated with PET on inpatient length of stay (LOS), number of readmissions, and associated costs from day 0 through day 180 post-HCT. This was a retrospective study of R+ adults who underwent peripheral blood or marrow allogeneic HCT at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center between March 2013 and December 2017. Patients were routinely screened for CMV by qPCR and received PET according to institutional standards of care. Data were extracted from electronic medical records and hospital databases. Itemized cost data per patient were obtained from the Vizient database, adjusted to 2017 dollars using inflation indices. Study outcomes included HCRU evaluated by inpatient LOS and inpatient cost in patients who received PET for clinically significant CMV (PET group) compared with those who did not receive PET (no PET group) and the frequency and cost of CMV-related readmissions compared with non CMV-related readmissions. We used generalized linear models to examine the incremental HCRU and costs associated with PET controlling for other potential factors. Of 357 patients, PET was initiated in 208 (58.3%), at a median of 35 days after HCT. By day 180, 23 patients (6.4%) had developed CMV EOD and 3 (.8%) had died of CMV. Compared with the no PET group, the PET group had a longer LOS for HCT admission (P=.0276), longer total LOS by day 180 (P=.0001), a higher number of readmissions (P=.0001), a higher mean inpatient cost for HCT admission ($189,389 versus $151,646; P=.0133), and a higher total inpatient cost ($297,563 versus $205,815; P < .0001). Among PET recipients, CMV-related readmissions were associated with higher mean cost per episode compared with non CMV-related readmissions ($165,455 versus $89,419; P=.005). CMV-related readmissions comprised 40.6% of total all-cause readmissions and incurred 55.9% of total all-cause readmission costs in PET recipients. Our data show that patients treated with currently available PET had greater inpatient HCRU and cost, by day 180 compared with patients who did not receive PET. The cost of CMV-related readmissions accounted for 56% of total readmission cost among PET recipients. Future studies are needed to examine the cost-effectiveness of alternative strategies for CMV management.

Operating model design in tuna Regional Fishery Management Organizations: Current practice, issues and implications

AbstractThe five Regional Fishery Management Organizations dedicated to tunas (tRFMOs) are all either developing or implementing Management Strategy Evaluations (MSEs) to provide advice for the stocks under their competencies. Providing a comparative overview will help tRFMOs to learn from one another and to collaborate on common solutions and may also help to more clearly define the challenges of building decision support tools in contexts of large scientific uncertainty and where management requires cooperation across multiple stakeholders characterized by unequal power and divergent interests. For example, our overview showed that in most cases, a grid‐based design with an emphasis on structural uncertainty has been adopted. However, uncertainties such as sampling errors and non‐stationarity of important ecological processes, which are of potentially equal significance for demonstrating robustness of management procedures, were not considered. This paper identifies key issues for operating model (OM) design that challenges the tRFMOs, compares how these challenges are being met, summarizes what lessons have been learned and suggests a way forward. Although the current approach of using assessment models as the basis for OM design is a reasonable starting point, improvements should be made to the conditioning of OMs, especially with respect to enabling the inclusion of other important processes and uncertainties that are difficult to account for in stock assessments but that can crucially affect the robustness of advice. Attempts should also be made to improve documentation and communication of uncertainties that are included and those that are excluded from consideration in the process.

Evaluation of Solid Food Waste Management Strategies in Estate Schools in Sri Lanka and Its Environmental Impact

Food wastes (FW) has become a crucial global issues. Food production should be increased substantially to meet the need of growing population, high tendency of spoilage and consumer preference are some of the main reasons for food waste. FW predominantly happen in public places such as hotels, hospitals and industrial parks. FW in Sri Lanka, several institutes can be highlighted including schools. 10194 government schools and 80 registered private school chains are functioning throughout the country. In which, total population including both students and teachers are over 4.5 million. Thus, handling large quantity of food in schools, leads to generate huge quantities of FW and it directly affect to the national economy. Therefore, this qualitative research was designed and implemented to determine reasons for FW and evaluate the efficiency of existing FW handling strategies in schools. The data were collected from 12 schools in each educational zone at Kegalle and Kurunegala, through a survey from teachers and students. Majority of students were provided homemade breakfast in both zones, further 20.92% of students in Kegalle and 37.21% of students in Kurunegala have wasted food with some percentage of breakfast daily. In addition, plate waste of free breakfast provided by school was identified as 20.31% of students and 24.62% of students in Kegalle and Kurunegala areas respectively. Free lunch was provided schools only in Kegalle educational zone and among those who was fed from school meal; 37.5% of students have wasted food in various percentages. Majority of students have brought lunch from home and 26.51% of students in Kegalle and 26.12% of students in Kurunegala thrown some amount of lunch daily. FW was comparatively high, when meals provided from school. Further, study revealed that most of school have not established an effective FW handling system within the premises. Therefore, a systematic programs should be implemented to control food wastes. In addition, awareness programs should be carried out to educate students to minimize FW. It is necessary to investigate the reasons for wasting large quantities from school meal. Finally, a national campaign on “Stop Food Waste” should be launched for school community to create a sustainable environmental development with appropriate mechanisms of school and family education.

Model-based evaluation of management options in ornamental plant nurseries

Agricultural management decisions are usually made without perfect knowledge. Decision Analysis (DA) approaches translate available uncertain information on costs, benefits and risks involved in decisions into actionable management recommendations. We illustrate the use of DA procedures to inform decisions on disease management strategies in ornamental plant production. We worked with heather growers and other stakeholders in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany, to model the impacts of changing disease management practices and to generate comprehensive forecasts of net returns. Through sensitivity analysis and Value of Information assessment we identified critical uncertainties regarding the feasibility of improved practices. Partial Farm Budgets for decision options ranged from a loss of more than 200,000 € to a gain of nearly 70,000 € per hectare and year. Findings suggest that reducing pesticide applications without additional monitoring may substantially increase production risks (chance of loss of 76%) and that intensified plant monitoring is likely to increase net benefits (chance of gain of 68%) by allowing earlier detection and more focused fungicide application. Our Decision Analysis approach facilitated ex-ante evaluation of innovative management strategies in heather production, and it holds promise for similar evaluations in other agricultural production systems.

Linking the performance of a data-limited empirical catch rule to life-history traits

AbstractWorldwide, the majorities of fish stocks are data-limited and lack fully quantitative stock assessments. Within ICES, such data-limited stocks are currently managed by setting total allowable catch without the use of target reference points. To ensure that such advice is precautionary, we used management strategy evaluation to evaluate an empirical rule that bases catch advice on recent catches, information from a biomass survey index, catch length frequencies, and MSY reference point proxies. Twenty-nine fish stocks were simulated covering a wide range of life histories. The performance of the rule varied substantially between stocks, and the risk of breaching limit reference points was inversely correlated to the von Bertalanffy growth parameter k. Stocks with k&amp;gt;0.32 year−1 had a high probability of stock collapse. A time series cluster analysis revealed four types of dynamics, i.e. groups with similar terminal spawning stock biomass (collapsed, BMSY, 2BMSY, 3BMSY). It was shown that a single generic catch rule cannot be applied across all life histories, and management should instead be linked to life-history traits, and in particular, the nature of the time series of stock metrics. The lessons learnt can help future work to shape scientific research into data-limited fisheries management and to ensure that fisheries are MSY compliant and precautionary.

Planning, implementation and evaluation of enterprise resource management strategies

Introduction. The development of innovation strategy is carried out within the strategic management of the enterprise. The innovation strategy has a long-term character and is formed in accordance with the goals of the enterprise for the optimal redistribution of resources within the investment activity. The purpose of the research is to summarize the theoretical and practical aspects of planning, implementation and evaluation of strategies for managing the resource potential of enterprises to develop recommendations in the field of agriculture. Results. The conditions of implementation and content of strategic management are determined. Aspects are substantiated that influence the choice of innovation strategy of the enterprise. The importance of directions coordination of innovative activity within the enterprise is noted. The expediency of forming the concept of socio-economic adaptation of the agricultural enterprise to the innovative model of technological development is substantiated. The definition of "economic adaptation" is given. Restrictions are described that prevent the introduction of an innovative model of technological development in the activities of Ukrainian agricultural enterprises. The role of the quality of staff interaction is noted in the process of enterprise innovative development. The measures have been identified to eliminate the negative impact of the innovative model of technological development on enterprises in the agricultural sector. The application of the methodology of interests’ coordination in the development process of technical re-equipment projects at the agricultural enterprise is offered. The conceptual content and principles of socio-economic adaptation of the agricultural enterprise to the innovative model of technological development are characterized. It is proposed to determine the competitiveness of the enterprise as a result of its socio-economic adaptation. The main indicators for evaluating the result of such adaptation are described. The coordination role of enterprise subjects’ interests in the course of social and economic adaptation is noted. Keywords: competition, resource potential, agricultural enterprise, adaptation, strategic management, strategy, innovative model of technological development.

An agent-based approach for modeling and simulation of human resource management as a complex system: Management strategy evaluation

Human resources management (HRM) is the strategic approach of managing people in organizations. HRM can be naturally represented as a complex system of autonomous human agents, whose interactions are influenced by mutually reinforcing HRM strategies, policies, and practices. Stochastic and dynamic human interactions could lead to emergent phenomena of organizational performance in the long-term. Therefore, decision-making in the HRM complex system could be challenging for the human mind due to its limited capacity to map multiple relationships, execute stochastic and dynamic interactions, consider trade-offs arising from competing objectives, integrate intermediate information generated by feedback loops, and visualize the impact on multiple performance metrics. Existing HRM decision-making models rely on analytical methods, survey-based statistical approaches, and aggregate rate-based System Dynamics simulation, assuming homogeneous populations, which leads to limitations in capturing dynamics of heterogeneous populations arising from micro-level interactions. Therefore, we propose an agent-based methodology to model HRM as a complex system, in which alternate management strategies could be simulated by way of agent interactions while observing the emergence of organizational performance. The model has been simulated to observe the long-term influences of alternate recruitment strategies on workforce fluctuations, demographics, skill profile, loyalty, and costs under distinct employee turnover rates. We propose that an agent-based methodology is more realistic in modeling micro-level employee interactions of an HRM system and possibly the ideal avenue to rehearse management strategy when experimentation on the real system is constrained. Fundamentally, the proposed model serves as a decision support system for HRM decision-making.

Defining the stock structures of key commercial tunas in the Pacific Ocean II: Sampling considerations and future directions

Delineating the stock structure of highly-mobile, wide-ranging fishes subject to exploitation is a challenging task, yet one that is fundamental to optimal fisheries management. A case in point are stocks of skipjack tuna (Katsuwonus pelamis), yellowfin tuna (Thunnus albacares), bigeye tuna (Thunnus obesus) and albacore tuna (Thunnus alalunga) in the Pacific Ocean, which support important commercial, artisanal, subsistence, and recreational fisheries, and contribute roughly 70 % of global commercial tuna catches. Although some spatial and temporal structuring is recognised within these stocks, growing evidence from a range of approaches suggests that the stock structure of each tuna species is more complex than is currently assumed in both stock assessment and climate change models, and in management regimes. In a move towards improving understanding of the stock structure of skipjack, yellowfin, bigeye and South Pacific albacore tunas in the Pacific Ocean, an international workshop was held in Nouméa, New Caledonia, in October 2018 to review knowledge about their movement and stock structure in the region, define and discuss the main knowledge gaps and uncertainties concerning their stock structure, and develop biological sampling approaches to support the provision of this information. Here, we synthesise the discussions of this latter component. For each tuna species, we identify several general sampling considerations needed to reduce uncertainty, including i) the need for broadscale sampling in space, ideally covering each species’ distribution, targeting adults in spawning condition and adopting a phased approach; ii) the need for temporally-repeated sampling of the same geographical areas to assess stability in observed patterns over time; iii) the need to resolve patterns in spatial dynamics, such as those resulting from movements associated with the seasonal extensions of poleward flowing currents, from underlying stock structure, iv) the importance of adopting a multidisciplinary approach to stock identification, and v) the need for careful planning of logistics and coordination of sampling efforts across agencies. Finally, we present potential sampling designs that could be adopted to help overcome uncertainties around the initial identification of stocks and the provenance, mixing and proportional contributions of individuals in harvested assemblages, as well as how these uncertainties could be accounted for in fisheries management via the use of management strategy evaluation.

Capturing stakeholder perspectives through a collaboration with a commercial fishing cooperative

Fisheries management should account for the tradeoffs associated with regulatory options to minimize unintended consequences and undue impacts on stakeholder communities. Importantly, these assessments necessitate the inclusion of the perceptions of resource users to help anticipate consequences. While stakeholder involvement is a central tenet in federal fisheries management, managers are faced with many challenges such as those associated with collecting perspectives from diverse groups and the potential biases associated with public testimony. Here we demonstrate the strength of a collaborative approach to generating social information from a commercial fishing cooperative (i.e., an association) by partnering with the Pollock Conservation Cooperative, a fishing cooperative for the Bering Sea pollock Catcher/Processor fleet in Alaska. To understand how the fleet may respond to hypothetical regulatory and environmental changes, we collaboratively designed a survey and applied a novel participant-selection strategy that focused on personnel involved in decision-making at the corporate and vessel levels. Our findings revealed that respondents from separate companies and with different performance histories had different perceptions, suggesting that broad fleet-level analyses are critical for management strategy evaluations that seek to understand the impacts of environmental change and regulatory decisions on a fishery. As such, establishing lines of applied sociological research could benefit from a collaborative approach that accounts for the fishery's organizational structure.

Validation of Spanish version of the human papilloma virus impact profile (HIP)

Objective To examine the construct validity and reliability of the Spanish version of the HPV Impact Profile scale (HIP) among women in Medellin, Colombia. Methods We conducted a nested analysis of data from the pragmatic randomized controlled trial “Evaluation of Strategies for Optimal Clinical Management of Women with Atypical Squamous Cells of Undetermined Significance” (ASCUS-COL; NCT02067468). Women with Atypical Squamous Cells of Undetermined Significance (ASCUS) were randomly assigned to one of three triage strategies (Pap smear, colposcopy, HPV). Participants completed a questionnaire with sociodemographic information and the HIP scale translated into Spanish at baseline, two weeks after receiving triage test results, and one year after the second questionnaire. We conducted exploratory and confirmatory factorial analysis, and then assessed test reliability using Cronbach’s alpha. Subsequently, we conducted multigroup confirmatory factor analysis to assess differences according to women´s age, and configurational invariance of the factor structure over the three time measures. Results The sample consisted of 675 women, with a mean age of 40 years. The exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis for the HIP showed a seven-factor structure with appropriate adjustment indicators (= 1466.783, p < .0001). Only two items (1 and 10) had low factor loads and were removed from the confirmatory analysis. Multigroup analysis according to women’s age showed acceptable goodness of fit (RMSEA = 0.037, CFI/TLI:0.998/0.998). The factor structure was similar among the tree measures and the model preserved acceptable goodness of fit (RMSEA = 0.079, CFI:0.86). The Cronbach’s alpha for the total score was 0.91, with the lowest score for sexual impact (0.49) and the highest score for worries and concerns (0.90). Conclusions The Spanish version of the HIP had adequate reliability and construct validity, and its use could be considered in clinic and research settings.

Development of pilot empirical harvest strategies for tropical tuna in Indonesian archipelagic waters: Case studies of skipjack and yellowfin tuna

Indonesia is a member of three tuna Regional Fisheries Management Organisations (RFMOs), but currently has limited capacity to operationally manage its tuna fisheries to maximise benefits and minimise risks of overfishing. In 2014, the Government of Indonesia initiated discussions on the potential to develop formal harvest strategies for the management of tuna resources within its archipelagic waters. This article summarizes the development of potential empirical tuna harvest strategies for use in Indonesian archipelagic waters (Fisheries Management Areas 713, 714 and 715), using skipjack tuna (Katsuwonus pelamis) and yellowfin tuna (Thunnus albacares) as demonstration case studies. The outputs of area-specific components of Western Central Pacific Ocean stock assessment were used to condition prototype operating models for testing preliminary harvest strategies by management strategy evaluation. The case studies demonstrate the utility of scientific monitoring data to track trends in abundance of adult fish, without requiring complex stock assessment models. They also demonstrate the use of relatively simple, empirical harvest control rules to adjust the levels of fishing intensity of the Indonesian fleet to achieve specific management objectives for archipelagic waters in the context of wider regional management. The approach has a broad applicability to developing coastal nations with multi-gear fisheries and relatively limited data that harvest tuna, as well as participating in RFMOs for internationally managed stocks.

Evaluation of Fungicides and Management Strategies against Cercospora Leaf Spot of Olive Caused by Pseudocercospora cladosporioides

Cercospora leaf spot of olive (CLSO), caused by Pseudocercospora cladosporioides, is one of the most important foliar diseases of olives worldwide. This study aimed to evaluate the effect of a wide range of fungicides on mycelial growth and conidial germination of P. cladosporioides in vitro, and to evaluate the effect of several fungicides, application timings and management strategies (conservative and risky) to control CLSO under field conditions. Of the studied fungicides, strobilurin compounds and benomyl were the most effective active ingredients, followed by folpet, captan and maneb, in inhibiting mycelial growth and conidial germination. The pyraclostrobin + boscalid treatment was effective under field conditions, even without the application of supplementary copper. Treatments conducted in October or March were more effective than those conducted in May. Management strategies based on the author’s experience reduced copper applications up to 32.0% and 50.0% (conservative and risky strategy, respectively) in comparison to the reduction with the traditional strategy, without increasing CLSO incidence. This work provides useful information about effective formulations against CLSO and a reduction in unnecessary fungicide applications in an effort to implement IPM in olive orchards under Mediterranean conditions.

A Mitigation Hierarchy Approach for Managing Sea Turtle Captures in Small-Scale Fisheries

The mitigation hierarchy has been proposed as an overarching framework for managing fisheries and reducing marine megafauna bycatch, but requires empirical application to show its practical utility. Focusing on a small-scale fishing community in Peru as a case study system, we test how the mitigation hierarchy can support efforts to reduce captures of sea turtles in gillnets and link these actions to broader goals for biodiversity. We evaluate three management scenarios by drawing on ecological risk assessment (ERA) and qualitative management strategy evaluation to assess trade-offs between biological, economic, and social considerations. The turtle species of management focus include leatherback turtle Dermochelys coriacea, green turtle Chelonia mydas, and olive ridley turtle Lepidochelys olivacea. Adopting a mixed-methods iterative approach to data collection, we undertook a literature review to collate secondary data on the fishery and the species of turtles captured. We then collected primary data to fill the knowledge gaps identified, including establishing the spatial extent of the fishery and calculating turtle capture rates for the fishery. We identified and evaluated the potential risk that the fishery poses to each turtle species within Pacific East regional management units using a qualitative ERA. Finally, we evaluated potential management strategies to reduce turtle captures, incorporating stakeholder preference from questionnaire-based surveys and considering preliminary estimates of trends across a range of performance indicators. We illustrate how the proposed framework can integrate existing knowledge on an issue of marine megafauna captures, and incorporate established decision-making processes to help identify data gaps. This supports a holistic assessment of management strategies towards biodiversity goals standardized across fisheries and scales.