Sebastián Villasante

The Key Role of the Barefoot Fisheries Advisors in the Co-managed TURF System of Galicia (NW Spain)

Many authors have pointed out the need for simpler assessment and management procedures for avoiding overexploitation in small-scale fisheries. Nevertheless, models for providing scientific advice for sustainable small-scale fisheries management have not yet been published. Here we present one model; the case of the Barefoot Fisheries Advisors (BFAs) in the Galician co-managed Territorial Users Rights for Fishing. Based on informal interviews, gray literature and our personal experience by being involved in this process, we have analyzed the historical development and evolution of roles of this novel and stimulating actor in small-scale fisheries management. The Galician BFA model allows the provision of good quality and organized fisheries data to facilitate and support decision-making processes. The BFAs also build robust social capital by acting as knowledge collectors and translators between fishers, managers, and scientists. The BFAs have become key actors in the small-scale fisheries management of Galicia and a case for learning lessons.

All fish for China

In this paper we examine the effect of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) on the level of fish intake in China in comparison with the rest of the world. We also analyse the origin and destination of China’s seafood products in order to understand the main patterns during the last decades. The results show that in the 1961–2011 period the rate of growth of the GDP in China doubled that of other developing regions, while the daily fish intake of China increased fourfold, making China the largest fish consumer in the world. Given the size and scale of China’s role in production, consumption, and global transformation of seafood markets, China is shaping a new era of industrialization in the history of the fishing industry.

ORIGINS MATTER: (NO) MARKET INTEGRATION BETWEEN CULTURED AND WILD GILTHEAD SEA BREAM IN THE SPANISH SEAFOOD MARKET

Interactions between fisheries and aquaculture have become a major issue that is still insufficiently studied. Therefore, the objective of this article is to test whether the cultured and wild gilthead sea bream in the Spanish seafood markets are integrated. By using the Johansen methodology, cointegration of the price series of farmed and wild gilthead sea bream was tested. In contrast to previous studies, our econometric results show that wild and the farmed gilthead sea bream form two heterogeneous products in the Spanish market. These new results question the generalization currently accepted by the scientific literature that farmed and wild fish are substitutes when they belong to the same species. The binomial product-market, along with some specific features of the Spanish market, such as the negative perceptions of aquaculture by some significant groups of consumers, appeared to have a great explanatory power for justifying these different results.

Linking Salmon Aquaculture Synergies and Trade-Offs on Ecosystem Services to Human Wellbeing Constituents

Salmon aquaculture has emerged as a successful economic industry generating high economic revenues to invest in the development of Chiloe region, Southern Chile. However, salmon aquaculture also consumes a substantial amount of ecosystem services, and the direct and indirect impacts on human wellbeing are still unknown and unexplored. This paper identifies the synergies and trade-offs caused by the salmon industry on a range of ecosystem services. The results show that large economic benefits due to the increase of provisioning ecosystem services are also causing a reduction on regulating and cultural services. Despite the improvement on average income and poverty levels experienced in communities closely associated with the sector, this progress is not large enough and social welfare did not improve substantially over the last decade. The rest of human wellbeing constituents in Chiloe region have not changed significantly compared to the development in the rest of the country.

Resilience and Challenges of Marine Social–Ecological Systems Under Complex and Interconnected Drivers

In this paper, we summarize the contributions made by an interdisciplinary group of researchers from different disciplines (biology, ecology, economics, and law) that deal with key dimensions of marine social–ecological systems. Particularly, the local and global seafood provision; the feasibility and management of marine protected areas; the use of marine ecosystem services; the institutional dimension in European fisheries, and the affordable models for providing scientific advice to small-scale fisheries. This Special Issue presents key findings from selected case studies around the world available to educators, policy makers, and the technical community. Together, these papers show that a range of diverse ecological, economic, social, and institutional components often mutually interact at spatial and temporal scales, which evidence that managing marine social–ecological systems needs a continuous adaptability to navigate into new governance systems.

Why are prices in wild catch and aquaculture industries so different

Through a comparative analysis of prices in capture fisheries and aquaculture sectors, the objectives of this paper are a) to investigate three the trends in prices of forage catches to feed the aquaculture species, b) to analyze the amount of fish species need to feed aquaculture species in order to assess the level of efficiency in resource use, and c) to examine the degree of economic concentration either in wild-catch industry and aquaculture sectors. The results show that prices of cultivated species are higher than prices of the same species when harvested from the sea. We explain this fact by the interplay of three forces. First, the amount of wild fish to feed aquaculture species continues to improve over time. Second, the pressure of fishing activities has not been reduced since catches of most forage fishes are declining, which induce higher prices of capture species that feed aquaculture production. Third, the level of seafood market concentration is significantly higher in aquaculture than in wild catches, which generates higher prices in aquaculture.

Economic effects of global warming under stock growth uncertainty: the European sardine fishery

Global warming of the oceans is expected to alter the environmental conditions that determine the growth of a fishery resource. Most climate change studies are based on models and scenarios that focus on economic growth, or they concentrate on simulating the potential losses or cost to fisheries due to climate change. However, analysis that addresses model optimisation problems to better understand the complex dynamics of climate change and marine ecosystems is still lacking. In this paper, a simple algorithm to compute transitional dynamics in order to quantify the effect of climate change on the European sardine fishery is presented. The model results indicate that global warming will not necessarily lead to a monotonic decrease in the expected biomass levels. Our results show that if the resource is exploited optimally, then in the short run, increases in the surface temperature of the fishery ground are compatible with higher expected biomass and economic profit.

The role of non-natural capital in the co-production of marine ecosystem services

ABSTRACT A growing concern is arising to recognize that ecosystem services (ES) production often requires the integration of non-natural capital with natural capital in a process known as co-production. Several studies explore co-production in different terrestrial ecosystems, such as agriculture or water delivery, but less attention has been paid to marine ecosystems. Coastal activities such as aquaculture, shellfish harvesting, and small-scale fishing deliver important benefits for seafood provision, but are also inextricably linked to cultural and recreational ES. The degree to which co-production can determine the provision of ES in marine systems has yet not been explored. This paper addresses this key topic with an exploratory analysis of case studies where marine ES are co-produced. We look at five small-scale fisheries that range from intensive semi-aquaculture in Galicia (Spain), to wild harvesting in Northern Portugal, and discuss to what extent co-production influences ES delivery. We find that a direct relationship exists between co-production level and ES delivery in the case of provisioning ES (e.g., fish harvest), but not necessarily in the delivery of other ES. We also find that management practices and property regimes may be affecting trade-offs between co-production and ES. EDITED BY Evangelia Drakou

Recent development of offshore marine power in Galicia

ABSTRACT Renewable energy development is characterized by the existence of different models in European countries, and they are interesting because of the proximity of those countries such as Spain, and in particular in Galicia (NW Spain). Given the complexity of the process, it is estimated that no commercial offshore wind farms will be approved until 2012, with operations possibly beginning in 2014. The process encountered greater difficulty than initially estimated, possibly because of the lack of in-depth feasibility studies. In Galicia, the following elements must be considered prior to the implementation of offshore wind parks: a) the structure of the continental shelf, which is much narrower than in other regions of Spain and Baltic areas, b) wind parks may potentially impact beaches and tourism activities, c) wind turbines may also affect the marine ecosystem and the landscape, so comprehensive studies must be conducted, and d) these facilities need support on land.

Operationalising marine and coastal ecosystem services

The ecosystem services concept has been increasingly adopted to assess nature’s contributions to people and to understand feedbacks within social-ecological systems. Yet, to be useful in decision-making, the scientific knowledge developed around the ecosystem services concept and its frameworks needs to be operationalised and taken up by policy-makers and practitioners (Primmer and Furman 2012). To help overcoming this critical challenge, IPBES, the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services was established in 2012 by national governments to set an interface between scientists, policy-makers and practitioners, and help setting the foundations for the incorporation of ecosystem services science into policy formulation (Díaz et al. 2015, 2018). For marine and coastal ecosystems, dedicated classification systems (e.g., Beaumont et al. 2007; Carollo et al. 2013), indicator sets (e.g., Böhnke-Henrichs et al. 2013; Lillebø et al. 2016), a series of literature reviews (e.g., Liquete et al. 2013; Garcia Rodrigues et al. 2017), newly defined research priorities (Rivero and Villasante 2016), and sectoral analyses (e.g., Lillebø et al. 2017) have advanced the theoretical underpinnings of marine and coastal ecosystem services (MCES). However, attempts to operationalise and put MCES into practice remain remarkably scarce. To address this research gap, this Special Issue compiles papers in which findings and recommendations resulting from MCES assessments were taken up by policy-makers and practitioners, and used in decision-making. In addition, several papers also provide insights on how scientific outcomes can better inform decision-making and have positive impacts on the marine environment. This Special Issue is a result of a joint collaboration between the International Council for the Exploration of the Sea Working Group on Resilience and Marine Ecosystem Services and the Ecosystem Service Partnership (ESP) Marine Biome Working Group. We received contributions from participants of the European ESP Conference Session Informing marine and coastal policy using ecosystem service assessments: evidence from real world applications, convened by the ESP Marine Biome Working Group in Antwerp, Belgium, on 22 September 2016. 2. Lessons learned and key recommendations to operationalise MCES