Geir Hønneland

A Model of Compliance in Fisheries — Theoretical Foundations and Practical Application

The concept of compliance has attracted increasing interest among political scientists in recent years.1 However, the discussion focuses primarily on the international level, the object of study being state compliance with the prescriptions of international treaties and regimes.2 Contributions on compliance on the part of individual actors are less common. Nevertheless, most of the social science literature on common-pool resources contains a more or less explicitly stated assumption of preconditions which have to be met in order for individuals to comply with established regulations. The aim of this chapter is to see major traditions within this debate in relation to the compliance literature.3 More specifically, the former’s inherent reasoning on compliance will be made explicit and incorporated into a model of how public authorities can make use of two categories of compliance mechanisms to induce compliance in individuals. On the one hand, contributions maintaining the basic assumptions of public choice theory have an innate image of individual compliance with regulations being the result of coercive measures on the part of public authorities. On the other hand, the emerging co-operative action or co-management literature would emphasise legitimacy or discursive measures as more effective in securing compliance with management regulations. Finally, the question is addressed as to which factors other than management initiatives may affect individuals’ choices concerning compliance vs. non-compliance.

Compliance in the Barents Sea fisheries. How fishermen account for conformity with rules

The article provides the results of an investigation of compliance in the Barents Sea fisheries, based on personal interviews with a selection of Norwegian and Russian fishermen. Previous studies have indicated a generally high level of compliance in this particular fishery, and the theme of the present article is how fishermen themselves explain this tendency to behave in conformity with established rules. The main conclusion is that the extent of surveillance seems to be less important than the legitimacy of management bodies. Of particular interest is the fishermens emphasis on a forthcoming and respectful attitude on the part of inspectors.

Compliance in the fishery protection zone around Svalbard

The 200‐mile Fishery Protection Zone around Svalbard was established by the Norwegian government in 1977 and has been an issue of international dispute ever since. The disagreement is rooted in different interpretations of the 1920 Svalbard Treaty and has led Norway to choose a gentle enforcement of fishery regulations in the area. In practice, this has implied that violators in the Svalbard Zone are not punished. Violation statistics from the Norwegian Coast Guard nevertheless reveal a high degree of compliance by fishermen. The main question of the present article is how this compliance can be explained. It is apparently problematic to account for it through a traditional coercion‐based approach since the threat of sanctions is absent. It is suggested that actual compliance is the result of such various factors as legitimacy, discursive measures, “indirect coercion”; or “creeping compliance,”; diplomatic negotiations, and sometimes also a lack of incentive on the part of fishermen to violate the rules.

Autonomy and regionalisation in the fisheries management of northwestern Russia

Since the disintegration of the Soviet Union, the main challenge of the fisheries management in northwestern Russia has been to adapt to ever more quickly changing surroundings. This article reviews the efforts of different management bodies to secure autonomy from industry interests, as well as the quest of regional authorities to attain control of the quota distribution. Major changes have in effect occurred in the Russian enforcement control of the Barents Sea, partly as a result of cooperation with Norwegian authorities. In the quota distribution, however, autonomy and regionalisation are still quite uncertain quantities.

Framing the High North: Public Discourses in Norway after 2000

Abstract The article presents an overview of the main public debates in Norway that can be said to have framed and defined the High North since the turn of the Millennium. It is based on a qualitative study of over 3000 articles published in four Norwegian newspapers issued between 2000 and 2006. Our discussion is structured around three overarching, interconnected narratives that we think capture the essence of the Norwegian public discourses on the High North between 2000 and 2006. These are “Fragments from the 1990s”; “The great narrative of the High North”; and “Mixing cold water with hot blood”. The first half of the 2000s is characterised by an almost total absence of the High North as a discursive and politically coherent concept. From 2004, however, usage grew fivefold, alongside an extensive, dynamic discursive mobilisation. When the Russians decided in 2006 to shelve the Shtokman project and critical voices were heard condemning Norways environmental performance in northwest Russia, public opinion swung back again. A feeling of cold reality replaced the sense of optimism towards the energy potential of the north, and an exercise in collective soul-searching commenced – similar to that of the early years of the decade. We believe the type of discursive change we document in this article constitutes policy trends in connection both with the High North and with other sectors where policy is subject to intense public debate and appraisal. We hope that discourse analysis has enabled us to investigate and share how Norwegian public discourses on the High North are socially produced, framed and maintained but at the same time are always in flux and open to “new” directions which should be possible – at least in theory – to trace by going back in time.

Institutional Change and the Problems of Restructuring the Russian Fishing Industry

This article discusses how the transition from a planned towards a market-based economy has affected the Russian fishing industry. It is based on a series of studies of the Northwest Russian fishing industry, where evidence from its past role and functioning is contrasted with the current situation. The conceptual perspective drawn on is institutional theory, with a focus on higher-order institutions. One of the main findings is that the fishing companies stand out as the only surviving party in the game. The losers are the land-based fish processing industry, the mother ship and transport fleet, and the support structures, which depend on the activities generated by the prime production (fishing). It is argued that the new institutional arrangements necessarily force a new adaptation among the fishing companies, and suggested that some of the changes of the higher-order institutions have been less successful than initially assumed, as there still are several adverse elements in the Russian institutional arrangements that hinder further transition toward a marketbased economy.

Quota allocation in Russia's northern fishery basin: principles and practice

Abstract The article gives a presentation of the management system for Russias northern fishery basin. One main question is whether the management system itself, the criteria for quota distribution, and the actual quota distribution have changed since the Soviet period. The federal authorities have maintained control over the management system while the regional authorities have seen their responsibility increased. The principles for quota allocation have to some extent changed, but practice has not. The traditional principle of catch capacity has been an important criterion for quota allocation also in post-Soviet Russia. It was supplemented by several general political principles for fisheries management in 1995. Other criteria aimed at solving pressing political problems were introduced during the latter half of the 1990s. None of these principles are reflected in the actual quota distribution during the period 1995–1999.

Handbook of the politics of the arctic

The Arctic has again become one of the leading issues on the international foreign policy agenda, in a manner unseen since the Cold War. Drawing on the perspectives of geopolitics and international law, this Handbook offers fresh insights and perspectives on the most pressing issues, grouped under the headings of political ascendancy, climate and environmental issues, resources and energy, and the response and policies of affected countries.

Federal Environmental Governance and the Russian North

The paper explores Russias environmental politics at the federal level, with a particular view to the consequences for the countrys northerly regions. It investigates the goals of the federal authorities in the field of environmental protection, and their ability to translate these into political action at the regional level in the Russian North. After a brief outline of Soviet environmental politics, the “green wave” of the 1980s and the setbacks of the 1990s are described. The general reorganization of the federal Russian bureaucracy of 2004 is treated separately, followed by a discussion of developments at the regional level in the Russian North.

Fisheries Management in Post-Soviet Russia: Legislation, Principles, and Structure

Abstract This article reviews the legislation, principles, and structure of Russian fisheries management since the break-up of the Soviet Union. The creation and implementation of Russian fisheries legislation has been slow and fumbling, and the structure of fisheries management in flux. One reason for this is the ideological gap between the federal bodies involved in the regulation of the fisheries. The State Committee for Fisheries defended the “traditional” fishery values, such as the continued supply of fish to Russian ports, while others were more concerned with revenues. A reorganization in 2004 split the State Committee for Fisheries into three agencies under the Ministry of Agriculture.