Mismanagement Of Marine Fisheries

A critique of the central assumption that marine ecosystems produce surplus fish that can be taken by commercial fishing.

Longhurst examines the proposition, central to fisheries science, that a fishery creates its own natural resource by the compensatory growth it induces in the fish, and that this is sustainable. His novel analysis of the reproductive ecology of bony fish of cooler seas offers some support for this, but a review of fisheries past and present confirms that sustainability is rarely achieved. The relatively open structure and strong variability of marine ecosystems is discussed in relation to the reliability of resources used by the industrial-level fishing that became globalised during the 20th century. This was associated with an extraordinary lack of regulation in most seas, and a widespread avoidance of regulation where it did exist. Sustained fisheries can only be expected where social conditions permit strict regulation and where politicians have no personal interest in outcomes despite current enthusiasm for ecosystem-based approaches or for transferable property rights.

This handbook is the most comprehensive and interdisciplinary work on marine conservation and fisheries management ever compiled. It is the first to bridge fisheries and marine conservation issues. Its innovative ideas, detailed case studies, and governance framework provide a global special perspective over time and treat problems in the high seas, community fisheries, industrial fishing, and the many interactions between use and non-use of the oceans. Its policy tools and ideas for overcoming the perennial problems of over fishing, habitat and biodiversity loss address the facts that many marine ecosystems are in decline and plagued by overexploitation due to unsustainable fishing practices. An outstanding feature of the book is the detailed case-studies on conservation practice and fisheries management from around the world. These case studies are combined with 'foundation' chapters that provide an overview of the state of the marine world and innovative and far reaching perspectives about how we can move forward to face present and future challenges. The contributors include the world's leading fisheries scientists, economists, and managers. Ecosystem and incentive-based approaches are described and complemented by tools for cooperative, participatory solutions. Unique themes treated: fisher behavior and incentives for management beyond rights-based approaches; a synthesis of proposed 'solutions'; a framework for understanding and overcoming the critical determinants of the decline in fisheries, degradation of marine ecosystems, and poor socio-economic performance of many fishing communities; models for innovative policy instruments; a plan of action and adoption pathways to promote sustainable fishing practices globally. Collectively, the handbook's many valuable contributions offer a way forward to both understanding and resolving the multifaceted problems facing the world's oceans.

Ensuring a healthy supply of fish & other marine species in the waters beyond each state's jurisdiction is a Federal responsibility carried out by the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) & 8 fishery management councils. This report assesses NMFS' compliance with three provisions of the Magnuson-Stevens Act, which require it to: use the best available scientific information for fishery management; take into account the economic importance of fishery resources to fishing communities as it adopts measures to manage fishery resources; & identify essential fish habitat, the adverse impacts on that habitat, & the actions needed to conserve & enhance that habitat. Charts & tables.

"NRC Monograph Publishing Program"--P. [ii].

For over twenty years, an alarming trend has emerged in the world’s fisheries: there are too many fishers chasing too few fish. This book provides a broad overview and fundamental reassessment of fisheries management policies around the world.

By examining international fishery resources from a primarily economic and political viewpoint, this book highlights the common property aspects of fisheries, physical productivity of the ocean, supply and demand, and the legal and institutional framework within which the fisheries industry operates. Originally published in 1966

This book reviews the fisheries of New England - "the poster child of mismanagement" - since 1977. It finds that many of the explanations offered for the New England problems are incorrect or irrelevant or counterproductive. It suggests that the problems lie in two general categories: first, the legislative and administrative context of management; and second and more serious, fundamental issues concerning fishing technologies, and lack of effective effort control strategies and an operational hypothesis of the dynamics of marine ecosystems. These latter issues are not confined to New England, but are inherent in most marine fisheries wherever they may be found. The book suggests a new concept for benign and selective fishing technologies, and it recommends a thorough review and analysis of the efficacy of effort control concepts. It proposes a management strategy based upon the hierarchical concept of ecosystems that could eliminate many of the current problems of management.