Harry F. Campbell

Individual transferable quotas in multispecies fisheries

Dale Squires and Samuel F. Herrick, Jr are at the U.S. National Marine Fisheries Service, P.O. Box 271, La Jolla, California 92038-0271, USA. Harry Campbell is at the University of Queensland, Queensland, Australia. Stephen Cunningham and Sean Pascoe are at the University of Portsmouth, Portsmouth, UK. Christopher Dewees is at the University of California, Davis, Davis USA. R. Quentin Grafton is at the University of Ottawa, Ottawa Canada. James Kirkley is at the Virginia Institute of Marine Science, Gloucester, VA, USA. Sean Pascoe is also at the Australian Bureau of Agricultural and Resource Economics, Canberra, Australia. Kjell Salvanes is at the Norwegian School of Economics and Business Administration, Bergen, Norway. Bruce Shallard can be contacted at Bruce Shallard and Associates, New Zealand. Bruce Turris is at the Canada Department of Fisheries and Oceans, Vancouver, Canada. Niels Vestergaard is at the Danish Institute for Fisheries Economics Research, Esbjerg, Denmark.

Estimating the elasticity of substitution between restricted and unrestricted inputs in a regulated fishery: A probit approach

Abstract Catch, effort, vessel, and skipper characteristic data for a sample of boats involved in the Tasmanian rock lobster fishery in the 1983/1984 season are used to estimate a fishing effort production function nested in a Cobb-Douglas fishery production function. The initial effort function is translog but tests suggest that the CES form cannot be rejected. The vessels choice of fishing ground is modeled by a probit equation, the output from which is included in the OLS estimation of the production function. The elasticity of substitution between the inputs which are restricted by regulation and the other inputs is of particular interest as it determines whether input restriction is an efficient form of regulation for the fishery. The results suggest a value significantly less than unity.

Rent Generation During the Transition to a Managed Fishery: The Case of the New Zealand ITQ System

This paper examines the generation of resource rent during the transition from an over-exploited to an efficiently managed fishery. A simple theoretical model is used to demonstrate that current industry returns may be low or even negative during this adjustment phase. A case in point is the New Zealand commercial fisheries which have recently become subject to a Quota Management System. Three sources of evidence on the level of resource rents generated during the initial years of the Quota Management System are examined and compared. These sources are: annual profitability data; the market price of perpetual quota; and the market price of annual lease quota. The evidence in some cases appears to be contradictory and an attempt is made to resolve or explain such differences. It is concluded that a better understanding of price determination in the quota market is required in order to draw correct inferences about rent generation.

Maximizing Resource Rent From the Western and Central Pacific Tuna Fisheries

Rent generated by the tuna fisheries occurring in the waters of Pacific Islands Nations is estimated for various levels and combinations of purse-seine, pole-and-line, frozen tuna longline, and fresh tuna longline fishing effort, using a multi-species, multi-fleet bioeconomic model. The underlying population model integrates available information on the population dynamics of skipjack, yellowfin, bigeye, and Southern albacore tunas in the Pacific Ocean. The economic model utilizes the most recent data on fishing effort costs for the purse seine, pole-and-line, and longline fleets operating in the western and central Pacific Ocean, along with recent estimates of prices by species, method of capture and market, and estimates of demand elasticities. The results of the model indicate that fishery rent could be increased substantially above the current level by decreasing the size of all fleets, with the possible exception of the tuna longline fleet. The results also suggest that the countries of the region could benefit significantly by changing the level and structure of access fees levied as a percentage of total catch revenue.

Joint ventures and technology transfer: the Solomon Islands pole-and-line fishery

Abstract Joint ventures are a popular way of facilitating the transfer of technology from distant water fishing nations (DWFNs) to developing resource-owning countries. In addition to being exploited by a joint venture, the Solomon Islands Fishing Zone is also exploited by a DWFN fleet and a domestic fleet. A stochastic frontier approach is used to compare changes in technology and technical inefficiency among the three fleets in the period 1988–1994. It is found that the level of productivity of the joint venture fleet is higher than that of the domestic fleet, reflecting some past gains from the joint venture. However, the rate of increase of productivity is higher for the domestic fleet, suggesting that the Solomon Islands are not receiving any on-going benefits of technology transfer in return for concessional access to their waters.

Can Purse Seiners Target Yellowfin Tuna

Both purse seine and longline fleets exploit yellowfin tuna in the western Pacific region. Management options available to achieve the optimal allocation of the yellowfin stock depend on whether purse seiners can control the species mix of their catch by targeting their fishing effort. A fishing strategy to target effort on juvenile yellowfin is discussed, and a supply model based on a revenue maximizing framework is estimated using data of Japanese and U.S. purse seine vessels in Papua New Guinea. The hypothesis of targeting is confirmed for the more modern U.S. fleet, but not for the more traditional Japanese vessels.

Allocating Yellowfin Tuna between the Multispecies Purse Seine and Longline Fleets

Yellowfin tuna in the western Pacific are harvested as juveniles by purse seiners and as adults by longliners. The study presents estimates of the multi-species harvest technology of these two types of vessel operating in Papua New Guineas Exclusive Economic Zone. The results, together with price and cost information and estimates of the impact of the purse seine catch on the catch rates of longline vessels are used to perform a benefit/cost analysis of a reallocation of juvenile yellowfin through a one percent decline in purse seine harvest in PNGs EEZ. The marginal benefit of investment in the yellowfin stock is found to exceed that of marginal cost, suggesting that there may be an economic case for a reallocation.

A Bioeconomic Model for Management of Orange Roughy Stocks

The paper reports the results of a bioeconomic analysis of the exploitation of a recently discovered orange roughy stock located off Tasmania. The parameters of the model are based on the experience derived from the orange roughy fisheries in New Zealand where stocks have been heavily exploited. The model is used to predict the open-access equilibrium stock, and to calculate the stock which maximizes the net present value and the stock level consistent with the F0.1 Rule. Assuming a linear approach path, the net present value of the fishery at each of these stocks is calculated. The results are used to estimate the benefit of management and the cost of a conservative stock policy. It is suggested that the results will contribute to the development of a management policy for the Tasmanian stock, and for stocks which are likely to be discovered elsewhere.

On the optimal resource rent tax

Total payments to government by a mineral exploration firm which follows Bayesian procedures when deciding on exploration plans are shown to vary with the rate of resource rent tax in a two part tax scheme which also includes a competitive auction of the right to explore and mine. If the explorer is risk neutral, then a zero tax rate maximises government revenue.

The role of research in fisheries management: The conservation of dolphins in the eastern tropical pacific and the exploitation of southern bluefin tuna in the Southern Ocean

This article uses two case studies to assess the role of research in policy formation and fishery management. One study focuses on measures to limit the mortality of dolphins taken when tuna are harvested in the eastern tropical Pacific. The other studies measures taken to limit harvests of Southern Bluefin Tuna. Both of these fisheries involve fugitive resources and transboundary resources spreading across both national exclusive economic zones and the high seas. Both fisheries were initially based on open access, but public policy has led to greater exclusive use through individual transferable quotas for Southern Bluefin Tuna and dolphin mortality limits. A number of policy conclusions are drawn.This article uses two case studies to assess the role of research in policy formation and fishery management. One study focuses on measures to limit the mortality of dolphins taken when tuna are harvested in the eastern tropical Pacific. The other studies measures taken to limit harvests of Southern Bluefin Tuna. Both of these fisheries involve fugitive resources and transboundary resources spreading across both national exclusive economic zones and the high seas. Both fisheries were initially based on open access, but public policy has led to greater exclusive use through individual transferable quotas for Southern Bluefin Tuna and dolphin mortality limits. A number of policy conclusions are drawn.