David Symes

Privatisation of the commons: the introduction of individual transferable quotas in developed fisheries

Abstract The failure of existing systems to achieve a sustainable equilibrium between resources and fishing effort has led to a search for alternative approaches to the management of common property resources. Individual transferable quotas (ITQs), including the allocation of fixed shares of the potential harvest among licensed vessels which may be exchanged, leased or sold on an open market, have been introduced in a handful of developed countries. The paper examines evidence from New Zealand, Canada and Iceland for common tendencies and unresolved issues. Most of the benefits claimed for ITQs are economic: increased operating efficiency, rationalisation of fleet structure, improved asset management and reduced monitoring costs for central government. The literature does little to expose the underlying moral dilemmas and the concern for social equity and balanced regional development. The paper concludes that, while their efficacy has yet to be tested in complex developed fisheries and they are unlikely to usurp other regulatory mechanisms, ITQs may have an important role to play in the development of a sustainable management strategy.

Fisheries management: in search of good governance

Abstract In many areas of public policy, governments have been seeking to devolve some of their responsibilities for policy formulation and implementation through contracting out. Not so in the case of Europes fisheries, where increased centralisation is occurring with Brussels assuming more authority for policy making. The paper explores the opportunities for devolved fisheries management through three different agendas: privatisation, co-governance and regionalisation. Normally held to be contrasting forms of development, a case is outlined for an approach to fisheries management in the EU which would reconcile these three approaches in an integrated system.

Regionalising the Common Fisheries Policy: context, content and controversy

The European Union (EU) has been slow to recognise the benefits of regionalising the Common Fisheries Policy (CFP) and even now the Commissions advocacy appears to lack the assuredness of conviction. To understand this reluctant conversion, the paper explains how increasing pressures for radical reform - enlargement, increasing diversity, expanding scope, budgetary pressures, the quest for good governance and an awareness of the CFP as a failing system – have encountered powerful forces for conservatism both within the legal structures of the EU and the development of the CFP itself which discourage transformational change. The paper traces the history of regionalisation up to its inclusion in the 2012 reform agenda and explores alternative forms of regionalising EU fisheries management and some of the key issues surrounding the successful completion of the project. Regionalising the CFP is seen not as an end in itself but as a means of repairing its damaged reputation and securing the effective delivery of the Policys objectives.

The European Community's common fisheries policy

Since 1976, the European Community has assumed responsibility for the development of fisheries policy within the EEZs of its member states. The success of the Common Fisheries Policy (CFP) has been diminished by two factors: the progressive enlargement of the common pond and the precedence given to the political need for relative stability over the scientific imperative of resource conservation. Only a fundamental reform of the CFP by 2002 can hope to redeem the Communitys fishing industry from the damaging effects of the politics of national self-interest.

Changing gender roles in productionist and post-productionist capitalist agriculture

Abstract Under conditions of productionist agriculture the lives of farm women have been largely subordinated to the needs of the farm business and have been relatively untouched by changes to the demographic, economic and social worlds beyond the farm gate. On small farms their labour potential has been exploited without proper financial reward or legal recognition. By contrast, the large farm has provided little scope for integrating farm women into the routines of agricultural production. In many cases their roles have been effectively replaced by hired labour and machines, yet they remain tied to the farm by a combination of domestic obligations and seemingly trivial farm duties. Post-productionist policies imply a threat to the survival of the family firm in capitalist agriculture. Some modification of the subordinate, farm-centred roles of farm women may be anticipated as a result of the emergence of post-productionist farm strategies. The diversification of enterprise structures on the farm and the development of ‘distance working’ may help to create opportunities for farm women to seek greater autonomy within the overall structure of the farm business. But potentially stronger pressures for change may arise from a closer convergence of the social world of farming with the ‘external environments’ of demographic change, regional economic development and changing global values.

Experiences with Fisheries Co-Management in Europe

Fisheries management in Europe is confronted by a situation of exceptional complexity such as is found nowhere else in the world. Not only is the coastline highly fragmented and deeply indented, with much of the marine space separated off into distinctive semi-enclosed areas like the Baltic, North, Mediterranean and Black seas, but responsibility for fisheries management is also divided among a large and growing number of coastal states.

Inshore Fisheries Management

List of Figures. List of Tables. List of Contributors. Series Editors Preface. Preface. Introduction. 1. Inshore Fisheries in Europe at the Turn of the Century D. Symes. Part I: National Studies. 2. Finland K. Nybacka. 3. Sweden G. Thoresson. 4. Denmark E. Roth. 5. The Netherlands R. van Ginkel. 6. Great Britain J. Phillipson, D. Symes. 7. Ireland N. Steins. 8. France K. Frangoudes. Part II: Common Themes: A Cross-Cultural Analysis of Inshore Fisheries. 9. The Social Organisation and Reproduction of Inshore Fishing D. Symes, K. Frangoudes. 10. Inshore Fishermen: Cultural Dimensions of a Maritime Occupation R. van Ginkel. 11. An Economic Rationale for Inshore Fishing: Simple Commodity Production and the Life Mode Approach K.M. Hansen, T. Hojrup. 12. Institutional Organisation and Regulatory Systems: Locality Versus Centre Driven Approaches to Inshore Fisheries Management J. Phillipson, M. Thom. Part III: Management Issues. 13. The Role of Aquaculture in Inshore Fisheries N. Steins, E. Roth. 14. Inshore Fisheries, Marine Wildlife Conservation and an Ecosystem Based Approach to Management D. Symes. 15. Multi-use Conflicts in Inshore Waters R. van Ginkel, N. Steins. 16. Integrated Coastal Zone Management: The Swedish Example L. Piriz. Part IV: Conclusion. 17. A Future Strategy for Inshore Fisheries Management J. Phillipson, D. Symes. Index.

The Social Organisation and Reproduction of Inshore Fishing

We know surprisingly little about the forms of social organisation and processes of social reproduction of inshore fishing in late twentieth century Europe. Most of the evidence is fragmentary and derives mainly from anthropological studies undertaken in the remoter areas of the Atlantic Fringe in the 1960s and 1970s, focusing largely on pre-industrial forms of fishing activity. Indeed, thanks to the sustained programme of studies by the Institute of Social and Economic Research at the Memorial University in St John’s, we know far more about the social organisation of Newfoundland fisheries than we do about the whole of northern and western Europe.

Inshore fisheries management in the UK: Sea fisheries committees and the challenge of marine environmental management

Under the existing terms of the Common Fisheries Policy, responsibility for fisheries management within the 12 mile territorial limits rests with the individual member state. In England and Wales that responsibility has been devolved to 12, regionally based Sea Fisheries Committees, involving a unique combination of local authority and industry representation. The role of SFCs is changing, as they face up to the challenge of marine environmental management. Their recent designation as possible lead agencies in the management of Special Areas of Conservation, working alongside conservation organisations, will provide a stern test of their resilience and adaptability.

The Common Fisheries Policy and UK quota management

Abstract Exclusive Economic Zones and the formulation of a Common Fisheries Policy have profoundly reshaped the political geography of the NE Atlantic fisheries. Outlining the characteristics of the new management framework, the paper draws attention to the use of Total Allowable Catches (TACs) as a mechanism for attempting to reconcile the need for stock conservation with demands for equitable allocation of catches between member states and the creation of an orderly market. Member states are free to manage their fisheries within the parameters set by TACs. For Britain, two systems have evolved: a centralised system for Area VII and a devolved system of ‘sectoral quota management’ for Areas IV and VI in which Producer Organisations can assume the role of quota managers on behalf of their members. The paper examines the latter system in detail and points to the inevitable conflicts between equity and efficiency.