Alyne Delaney

Scientific Knowledge and Participation in the Governance of Fisheries in the North Sea

The participatory mode of fisheries governance is based on effective communications that are able to bring together the viewpoints of many stakeholders so that management decisions can be generated. This chapter offers a discussion of the relationship between stakeholder participation as it is taking place on a European scale and the generation of formal scientific knowledge for the management of fish stocks under the Common Fisheries Policy (CFP). It examines the demersal stocks in the North Sea in particular. Stakeholder participation has been an important factor leading to demands for changes on the ways in which formal scientific advice is generated and communicated. The impacts on scientific deliberations of three such demands are examined: a) a demand that advice shift from the fish stock to the fishery as its basic unit of reference; b) a demand that advice not be open to different interpretation by the various stakeholders; and c) a demand that the results of existing technical fisheries management measures be examined when preparing advice. The chapter concludes that a flatter decision making hierarchy could make possible both a richer knowledge base and greater public support for management decisions.

Japanese Fishing Cooperative Associations: Governance in an Era of Consolidation

Using Miyagi Prefecture, Tohoku, Japan, as a case study, this chapter highlights the difficulties consolidation of fishing cooperative associations (FCAs) presents currently to small-scale fisheries governance in Japan. Historically, Japanese small-scale fisheries are known for their successful management through fisheries cooperatives and traditional local institutions. Significant change has taken place in the last 20 years, however, with the consolidation of local, port-level FCAs into prefecture level ones. A question is thus raised about the overall quality for governance, i.e. capacity and capability, in such large-scale mergers of local, port-level cooperatives into prefectural ones. In other words, is the fisheries system more or less governable with the new governance arrangement? Consolidating cooperatives may be economically rational; yet doing so disempowers local, small-scale fishers and does not, contrary to stated goals, provide better services to member fishers.

How Resilient Are Europe’s Inshore Fishing Communities to Change? Differences Between the North and the South

One would hypothesize that the Common Fisheries Policy, as the umbrella framework for fisheries management in the EU would have the greatest impact on fishers’ communities across Europe. There are, however, biological, economic, social, and political factors, which vary among fishing communities that can affect how these communities react to changes. This paper explores the links between institutional arrangements and ecological dynamics in two European inshore fisheries socio-ecological systems, using a resilience framework. The Mediterranean small-scale fishers do not seem to have been particularly affected by the Common Fisheries Policy regulations but appear affected by competition with the politically strong recreational fishers and the invasion of the rabbit fish population. The inshore fishers along the East coast of Scotland believe that their interests are not as sufficiently protected as the interests of their offshore counterpart. Decisions and initiatives at global, EU, and sometimes national level, tend to take into account those fisheries sectors which have a national economic importance. A socio-ecological analysis can shift the focus from biological and economic aspects to more sustainable long-term delivery of environmental benefits linked to human wellbeing.

Society and Seaweed: Understanding the past and present

Abstract Throughout the world, seaweed has held an important role in culture and society. This chapter provides an overview of the uses of seaweeds and their management, focusing in particular, though not exclusively, on Atlantic coastal Europe and East Asia. Harvesting seaweed has historically been a challenging occupation, which produces status, luxury goods, and “peasant” food alike. Following human consumptive uses, the creativity of humans found uses for the algae as feed for animals, fertilizers, housing materials, medicines, and, today, for industrial purposes. Management institutions have evolved to sustainably harvest these algae and these institutions reflect local cultures and values in which all harvesters are recognized, especially women. Womens contributions are very important in this industry, for both wild harvesting as well as farming. Though the use of seaweeds and seaweed harvesting has waxed and waned over the years, particularly for many isolated regions, it remains a critically important resource even today.Throughout the world, seaweed has held an important role in culture and society. This chapter provides an overview of the uses of seaweeds and their management, focusing in particular, though not exclusively, on Atlantic coastal Europe and East Asia. Harvesting seaweed has historically been a challenging occupation, which produces status, luxury goods, and “peasant” food alike. Following human consumptive uses, the creativity of humans found uses for the algae as feed for animals, fertilizers, housing materials, medicines, and, today, for industrial purposes. Management institutions have evolved to sustainably harvest these algae and these institutions reflect local cultures and values in which all harvesters are recognized, especially women. Womens contributions are very important in this industry, for both wild harvesting as well as farming. Though the use of seaweeds and seaweed harvesting has waxed and waned over the years, particularly for many isolated regions, it remains a critically important resource even today.

When social sustainability becomes politics – perspectives from Greenlandic fisheries governance

This article approaches the topic of social sustainability as a discourse which holds potential for affecting fishery policy and investigates the extent to which this potential has actually materialised. The article identifies an Arctic social sustainability discourse and asks how it interacted with Greenlandic fisheries governance in the period from 2010 to 2012 when a major individual transferable quota (ITQ) reform was introduced into one of the largest coastal fisheries in Greenland: the coastal Greenland halibut fishery. The analysis is based on an impact assessment study of the ITQ reform, a self-reflexive discourse analysis of the social scientific production of truths relating to “Arctic social sustainability” and participant observation of the policy-making process. The article concludes that in the planning of the ITQ reform, the “truths” provided by the social sustainability discourse were deemed less relevant than the ones provided by competing discourses on biological and economic sustainability. The article suggests the possibility that the social sustainability discourse was dismissed because it was equated to a previously dominant political stance in Greenlandic fishery policy which the ITQ reform was meant to replace.

The Neoliberal Reorganization of the Greenlandic Coastal Greenland Halibut Fishery in an Era of Climate and Governance Change

Greenlandic fisheries and fisheries governance are in the midst of change. The effects of climate change can be readily seen in glacier melt and differences in sea ice. Meanwhile, significant changes in fisheries governance are seen through the introduction of new management plans in which the trickle-down of neoliberal ideas are evident. The most recent and significant changes taking place currently are in the coastal Greenland Halibut fishery where restructuring is expected to provide additional revenue for the government. This article presents the 2012 Coastal Greenland Halibut Management Plan, explores the alterations made to plan regulations in 2014, and discusses the implications of the ongoing reform process. The changes being made to coastal Greenland Halibut fishery management highlight a difficult balancing act between the neoliberal reorganization of the fisheries and the sustainability of coastal society and culture. The article concludes that decisions on fisheries regulations will remain in ...

50th plenary meeting report (PLEN-15-03) : plenary meeting, 9-13 November 2015, Brussels

Graham, A. ... et. al.-- 49th Plenary Meeting Report of the Scientific, Technical and Economic Committee for Fisheries (STECF) (PLEN-15-02), Plenary Meeting, 6-10 July 2015, Varese, Italy.-- 127 pages

Governing marine restoration: the role of discourses and uncertainties

Governing marine environments has evolved from dominant interests in exploitation, allocation, conservation, and protection to restoration. Compared to terrestrial and freshwater environments, restoration of and in marine ecosystems presents a new mode of intervention with both technical and governance challenges. This paper aims to enhance understanding of the important factors at play in governing marine ecosystem restoration. Discourses of marine ecosystem restoration are an important factor which shape how the restoration activity is governed, as discourses structure how actors and coalitions define problems and their approaches to solutions. The article produces a conceptual model of the discourses of marine ecosystem restoration, built on two dimensions: (1) the degree of human intervention and (2) motivations for restoration. Together, these dimensions create four broad restoration discourses: “Putting Nature First,” “Bringing Nature Back,” “Helping Nature support Humans,” and “Building with Nature.” Moreover, marine ecosystem restoration is confronted with different forms of uncertainty, such as incomplete knowledge, unpredictability, and ambiguity, which must be managed by actors participating in restoration initiatives. The articles overall contribution is the synthesis of these components, which illuminates the specific governance challenges under various circumstances.

Challenges to fisheries advice and management due to stock recovery

During the 20th century, many large-bodied fish stocks suffered from unsustainable fishing pressure. Now, signs of recovery are appearing among previously overfished large-bodied fish stocks. This new situation raises the question of whether current fisheries advice and management procedures, which were devised and optimized for depleted stocks, are well-suited for the management of recovered stocks. We highlight two challenges for fisheries advice and management: First, recovered stocks are more likely to show density-dependent growth. We show how the appearance of density-dependent growth will make reference points calculated with current procedures inaccurate. Optimal exploitation of recovered large-bodied fish stocks will therefore require accounting for density-dependent growth. Second, we show how a biomass increase of large-bodied piscivorous fish will lead to a reverse trophic cascade, where their increased predation mortality on forage fish reduces forage fish productivity and abundance. The resulting decrease in maximum sustainable yield of forage fish stocks could lead to conflicts between forage and large-piscivore fisheries. Avoiding such conflicts requires that choices are made between the exploitation of interacting fish stocks. Failure to account for the changed ecological state of recovered stocks risks creating new obstacles to sustainable fisheries management.

Implementing the Small-Scale Fisheries Guidelines: Lessons from Japan

The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) recently began the implementation phase of its Voluntary Guidelines for Securing Sustainable Small-Scale Fisheries in the Context of Food Security and Poverty Eradication (the SSF Guidelines). The SSF Guidelines emphasize food security, poverty reduction, and ecological sustainability. Japan is an industrialized nation with a relatively low poverty rate and good food security. Thus, what utility, if any, could the SSF Guidelines hold for Japan? And what lessons can the Japanese case provide for other nations around the world? Outsiders to fisheries may assume that developing countries are characterized by small-scale fisheries while industrialized nations have large-scale fleets and a minority of small-scale fishers. Yet fisheries in Japan are overwhelmingly small-scale and based in local communities with historic links to nearby coastal resources and characterized by strong local community culture, values, and identities, representing a way of life for these practitioners. With this reality in mind, this chapter focuses on three of the SSF Guidelines objectives for which Japan presents a positive case: sustainable fisheries management; equitable development in coastal communities; and the contribution of small-scale fisheries to an economically, socially, and environmentally sustainable future. This chapter provides a brief overview of the history of Japanese coastal fisheries, with a special emphasis on the community-based management styles and how these sustain both cultural and environmental resources. The current challenges of Japanese coastal fisheries are also discussed, highlighting both lessons learned and potential challenges ahead for other nations as they work toward implementation of the SSF Guidelines.