Social Networks of Alaska Fishing Communities

Fishing community social networks function as channels for transfer of fishery knowledge, resources, and business transactions that help mitigate risks and shocks associated with altered access to fishery resources. Research on such networks in Alaska is limited despite their cultural importance and community reliance on fisheries. We contribute to scholarship of fishery social networks by assessing Alaska fishing community perspectives of challenges related to fisheries policy and management, and the existing social networks that aid in overcoming these challenges. Our findings show that the greatest challenges fishing communities face pertaining to fishery management are high costs of participating in catch share programs, restricted subsistence fishing activity due to decline in salmon, and complex regulations. Social networks exist for coping with these challenges; fishery information, and resources such as food, fuel and medicines are shared between communities. However, networks for accessing fishery support services are centralized in fewer larger communities and hubs such as Anchorage. Smaller and remote communities are the most compromised in this regard given the distance they must travel to access fishery support services. Leveraging social networks for sharing resources and improving fishery support services in smaller communities will increase their adaptive capacity and ability to maintain participation in Alaska fisheries.     

Do Active Participation Measures Help Fishermen Retain Fishing Privileges?

In numerous fisheries management programs, managers have implemented measures to ensure that the benefits of the fishery accrue to those who are actively fishing. Although active participation measures are common in fisheries management, there has been limited research on these measures. This study highlights the variety of objectives that motivate the development of active participation measures and how they have been implemented. We examine the application of these measures in four case study fisheries management programs—the Alaska Halibut and Sablefish Individual Fishing Quota, the Pacific Coast Sablefish Permit Stacking, the Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands Crab Rationalization, and the Alaska State Limited Entry programs—and, based on the experiences in these programs, provide recommendations for instituting active participation measures in other management programs.     

The Potential Economic Benefits of Coastal Ocean Observing Systems: The Southeast Atlantic Region

The Southeast Atlantic Coastal Ocean Observing System (SEACOOS) collects, manages and disseminates coastal oceanic and atmospheric observation information along the Atlantic coast of the southeastern United States. This article estimates the benefits of SEACOOS information in eleven benefit categories. Following a methodology used in similar studies of other U.S. coastal regions, we evaluate the impacts of conservative changes in economic activity in each benefit category. The annual economic benefit of SEACOOS information is $170 million (2003 $), an estimate that falls between annual benefits of $33 million for the Gulf of Maine region and $381 million for the Gulf of Mexico.     

Sustainability Challenges in the Geoduck Clam Fishery of British Columbia: Policy Perspectives

The geoduck clam fishery, worth approximately CDN $40 million ¹ US $ equivalence: 35 million (Bank of Canada exchange rate on February 1, 2006). in annual landed value, is British Columbia's most valuable invertebrate fishery. This fishery has been co-managed by the Department of Fisheries and Oceans (DFO) and the Underwater Harvesters Association (UHA) since 1989. Earlier input control measures such as effort regulation, seasonal closures, and licenses failed to work effectively for more than ten years, resulting in excess fishing capacity, over harvesting, poor economic returns, and unsafe fishing practices. Output control measures such as the individual vessel quota system (IVQ) have, to some extent, proven successful in improving revenues, controlling excess fishing capacity, gaining compliance with regulations, and involving fishers in the joint decision-making processes. However, there are public concerns about a common property resource at risk of being dominated by a few UHA license holders. Additionally, there are concerns about the job losses resulting from IVQ implementation, as well as distribution and equity issues. This article traces and examines the policy context for fisheries management in the British Columbia (BC) geoduck fishery, discusses the major concerns surrounding the exploitation of long lived Methuselah's clams and concludes with areas for further research in sustaining this lucrative fishery.     

Adapting to Catch Shares: Perspectives of West Coast Groundfish Trawl Participants

Abstract

Catch share programs are used in fisheries management to meet goals such as species recovery, overcapacity reduction, and economic efficiency. Anticipated impacts include fleet consolidation, infrastructure reduction, and social disruption within communities. The Pacific Coast Groundfish Fishery Social Study (PCGFSS) aims to understand social changes related to the recently implemented West Coast Groundfish Trawl Catch Share Program. In this article, we use a subset of PCGFSS data to explore the ways remaining fishery participants have thus far adapted to catch shares. While some vessels have left the fishery, we found that many participants are adapting to this catch shares program despite challenges. Quota leasing strategies, fishery diversification, gear innovation, and community quota funds are some of the tools participants are using to continue operating under the catch shares program. These early challenges and adaptations to the catch share program are worthy of continued tracking, as researchers, managers, and fishing communities, would benefit by considering first-hand perspectives of the on-the-ground realities of harvesting groundfish in the rationalized fishery.     

Policy and culture: The bristol bay case

Abstract

This paper deals with the difficulties of implementing legislation in non‐Western social and cultural contexts. The author presents an abbreviated case study of Alaska's effort to increase the economic returns of resident fishermen by restricting entry into state‐controlled fisheries. This paper examines how the implicit objectives of Alaska's Limited Entry Act of 1973 were effectively obstructed by the regulatory policy and by the implementation process. The paper focuses on the impact of this policy on Native Americans of Bristol Bay, Alaska, the site of the largest commercial fishery in Alaska and the world's largest salmon runs. Presented are some of the reasons several hundred natives were ultimately excluded from participating in the local commercial fishery.     

Making Landfall: Linkages between Fishing Communities and Support Services

The relationship between the fishing industry and the fisheries-related support service sector creates economic benefits for communities through the strong linkages between fishermen and their land-based suppliers and the induced or multiplier effects from fisheries revenue. The support service sector is embedded within fishing communities where the impacts of fisheries management changes are perpetuated. This article examines the potential for such impacts by evaluating the diversity of fishing gear use, ex-vessel revenue, presence of processing plants, public moorage, and haul-out or tidal grids, and the number of vessels in a community, in relation to the availability of support services in communities in Alaska. The results show that the presence of a processor and haul-out facilities in a community significantly affects the number of support service businesses; however, there is not a strong association with the number of vessels or ex-vessel revenue. One hypothesis is that fishermen often travel to other communities to obtain services. We evaluate this hypothesis using social network analysis to evaluate transfers of revenue for fishery-related goods and services. Ultimately, this informs the exploration of the importance of support service businesses and fishery-support infrastructure to the continued well-being of fishing communities.     

Ludwig?s Ratchet and the Collapse of New England Groundfish Stocks

The stocks of principal groundfish species off New England have collapsed, creating economic hardship and dislocation in fishing communities from Rhode Island to Maine. In this article we analyze the causes of this collapse using the ?ratchet effect? described by Ludwig, Hilborn, and Walters (1993) as a framework. According to Ludwig, Hilborn, and Walters, powerful economic and political interests drive fisheries to overcapitalize and overexploit despite scientific evidence that stocks are declining. When the fishery is no longer economically viable, governments provide financial assistance to minimize economic hardship. When stocks increase there is another rush to invest, and the cycle repeats itself. The history of groundfish management in New England conforms well to this model. Optimism among fishers and government over U.S. control of this fishery in 1977 stimulated successive rounds of investment that built up excessive fishing capacity despite warnings from scientists that stocks were becoming weaker. Management regimes designed by the New England Fishery Management Council were ineffective in constraining fishing effort. Collapse of the stocks has led to severe restrictions on fishing and to government assistance. We suggest that the integration of science, management, and harvesting sectors through ecosystem-based management offers the best means of avoiding similar situations in the future.     

Economic Outcomes for Harvesters under the West Coast Groundfish Trawl Catch Share Program: Have Goals and Objectives Been Met?

Abstract

The West Coast Groundfish Trawl Catch Share Program was designed to achieve multiple economic goals and objectives, including increasing net benefits, profitability, flexibility, and utilization of harvest allocations. In this article, we leverage seven years of comprehensive cost and earnings data to evaluate progress towards these goals with a focus on harvesters. Our assessment shows that five years post-implementation, net benefits to the nation have doubled, and indicators of productivity and profitability have increased. The fleet that targets Pacific whiting has seen the largest gains, due in part to increases in total allowable catch and the elimination of the race-to-fish. However, increased revenues have not been realized to the degree that was expected for harvesters targeting non-whiting groundfish, partly due to lower than predicted consolidation and relatively low quota utilization. Economic outcomes indicate that tradeoffs exist between certain objectives of the program, specifically between achieving full utilization and flexibility for harvesters. Results are discussed in the context of the design and evaluation of catch share programs for diverse, multispecies fisheries.     

Crew in the West Coast Groundfish Catch Share Program: Changes in Compensation and Job Satisfaction

Abstract

Catch share programs can have far-reaching effects on coastal communities and the people that rely on fishing income, including crew members. Analysis of management actions affecting crew wages and well-being is often limited due to a dearth of available data. We examine crew-related outcomes during the first six years of the West Coast Groundfish Trawl Catch Share Program using two unique datasets – a mandatory economic survey and a voluntary social science study. We find that impacts on crew compensation differ from other catch share programs due to prior conditions of the fishery and also vary by the target species within the program. The median number of crew positions per vessel increased slightly, annual crew days decreased, and crew wage as a percentage of revenue was nearly unchanged, even with the introduction of new costs. Median daily crew compensation increased from $514 per day to $776 after implementation of catch shares and annual compensation increased from $33 thousand to $39 thousand. Many crew members expressed a lack of support for the program and job satisfaction did not rise with increased wages and fewer days at sea, indicating that job satisfaction is likely influenced by more than compensation and effort.     

Using Socioeconomic and Fisheries Involvement Indices to Understand Alaska Fishing Community Well-Being

Over recent years, fisheries managers have been going through a paradigm shift to prioritize ecosystem-based management. With this comes an increasing need to better understand the impacts of fisheries management decisions on the social well-being and sustainability of fishing communities. This article summarizes research aimed at using secondary data to develop socioeconomic and fisheries involvement indices to measure objective fishing community well-being in Alaska. Data from more than 300 communities in Alaska were used to create a database of socioeconomic and fisheries involvement indices of objective well-being and adaptability for Alaska communities dependent on marine resources. Each index was developed using a principal components factor analysis to assess the relative position of each community compared to all other communities in Alaska. We find that creating performance measures, such as the indices presented here, provides a useful way to track the status of socioeconomic conditions and fisheries involvement by communities over time.     

The Origins and Early Implementation of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act of 1976

The Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Management and Conservation Act, enacted in 1974, is the primary federal fishery management legislation in the United States. The political impetus that led to enactment was the extensive foreign fish off U.S. shores that expanded following World War II and the failure of international negotiations to prevent the decline in many fisheries relied upon by domestic fishers. In Congress, there was uncertainty as to whether a comprehensive management program would be created along with a unilateral extension of fishery management jurisdiction out to 200 nautical miles. The delay in agreement over a new United Nations Law of the Sea Treaty and resolution of the extent of coastal nation jurisdiction over fisheries culminated in enactment of the legislation sponsored by Senator Warren Magnuson, a Democrat from Washington State, and Senator Ted Stevens, a Republican from the State of Alaska.     

Fisheries Management for California Dungeness Crab—Adapting to Change

The Dungeness crab (Cancer magister) fishery, economically robust in California while other fisheries are depressed, is under pressure to develop new management tools. The California Legislature and responsible state agencies have responded to each new crisis in the fishery with revised management regulations that are unwieldy in adapting to changing conditions. Some fishermen are displaced, while others benefit. This then leads to the next set of challenges and reactions. The differing economic needs of processors and fishermen, large and smaller producers, and northern and southern fishermen, plus the agendas of influential nongovernmental organizations, produce advocacies for conflicting management options, hindering progress toward resolution. The Legislature wants guidance from the fishery, but the fishery does not speak with one voice. Alternative dispute resolution can help these diverse but interdependent interests move toward agreement on new management tools. The principles of adaptive management—gathering information, setting goals, predicting outcomes, monitoring and evaluating results toward obtaining such outcomes, then reviewing what worked and what failed—can lead to more economically and socially optimal outcomes.     

Economic value of fish,wildlife, and recreation in Michigan's coastal wetlands

On the basis of annual expenditures by recreational participants and standard values of recreation days, as well as estimated sport and commercial harvests, the gross annual return from Michigan's 105,855 acres of coastal wetlands has been estimated. Analysis of fish, wildlife, and recreational values revealed that in 1977 these wetland areas generated an economic value of $489.69 per wetland acre, for a direct annual gross of $51.8 million. Specifically, these average return values per wetland acre/year, in descending order, are sport fishing ($286), nonconsumptive recreation ($138.24), waterfowl hunting ($31.23), trapping of furbearers ($30.44), and commercial fishing ($3.78). These gross annual return values were calculated in an effort to sensitize the general public to the diversity and possible magnitude of selected wetland functions.     

Norwegian North Sea action programme: Analysis of measures to reduce nutrient inputs

According to the terms of the Ministerial Declaration on the Protection of the North Sea, input of the nutrients phosphorus (P) and nitrogen (N) to the coast from the Norwegian‐Swedish border to Lindesnes should be reduced by about 50% between 1985 and 1995. The State Pollution Control Authority (SFT) has analyzed how Norway can achieve this reduction in the most cost‐effective way and at the same time achieve the greatest possible improvement in water quality along the Norwegian coast and in its watercourses.

Two alternative sets of measures were analyzed, both of which would meet the requirements of the Declaration. The lowest‐cost alternative would have average annual costs of about NKr 930 million (U.S.S150 million), and investments of about NKr 4000 million (U.S. $643 million). However, this set of measures would not take account of local water quality, and measures would therefore not always be introduced where the need is most pressing. SFT proposed that an alternative set of measures be implemented, almost all of which would also help to achieve local goals for water quality. This alternative will have annual costs of about NKr 980 million (U.S.$158 million), and investments of about NKr 4100 million (U.S.$659 million).     

Shorebased Processor Outcomes Under Catch Shares

Abstract

Fishery management measures often aim to regulate harvesting behavior but can have downstream effects on fish processors, output markets, and consumers. Empirical analysis of these impacts is generally limited due to data availability. In this article, we utilize census costs and earnings data to examine operational characteristics and economic outcomes for shorebased processors before and after implementation of the West Coast Groundfish Trawl Catch Share Program. While the overall number of buyers of catch share species along the coast decreased and fish input prices generally increased, patterns in outcomes were different for processors with Pacific whiting operations compared to those that produce nonwhiting groundfish, including lengthened seasonal whiting operations but a decrease in the number of days receiving nonwhiting groundfish. These differences in outcomes illustrate the complexities involved in the management of multispecies fisheries with heterogeneous participants in both the harvest and post-harvest sectors. This review contributes to the fairly limited empirical work on the fish processing sector, which is an integral part of the seafood supply chain and important to the economic resilience of coastal fishing communities.     

Ground-truthing social vulnerability indices of Alaska fishing communities

Abstract

Community vulnerability is increasingly evaluated through quantitative social indices, typically developed using secondary data sources rather than primary data collection. It is necessary to understand the validity of these indices if they will be used to inform policy and decision making. This paper presents a ground-truthing effort to validate quantitative indices that characterize the well-being of Alaska fishing communities. We utilized ethnographic data collected from 13 representative communities and a capital assets framework to ground-truth the indices, in which qualitative ranks of vulnerability were compared against quantitative indices. The majority (73.8%) of ranks were in complete or moderate agreement and the results indicate that most of the indices are representative of community vulnerability; yet some variables utilized to create the indices could be modified to better reflect realities in Alaska. Indices of commercial fishery engagement and reliance appeared to be more reliable than socio-economic indicators, particularly for smaller fishing communities. We also confirmed that the indices do not capture political, or ecological factors that affect levels of community vulnerability. We conclude that quantitative indices of community vulnerability are useful rapid assessment tools; however, they should be validated, and complemented with ethnographic data prior to their implementation as policy making and management tools.     

Marine Protected Area Costs as “Beneficial” Fisheries Subsidies: A Global Evaluation

Marine protected areas (MPAs) are now generally accepted as important tools in the protection of coastal biodiversity. It is also likely that they play a positive role in enhancing fisheries. Yet currently, less than 1% of the global oceans are protected, although international agreements have targets ranging from 10–30% coverage. Despite its minuscule size, we consider the current MPA “network” to be beneficial to fisheries, and its running or maintenance cost, therefore, to be a positive contribution to the sustainability of fisheries, or a “beneficial” subsidy (“harmful” subsidies enhance fishing capacity and effort). A method was derived from data in Balmford et al. (PNAS, 101: 9694–9697) to estimate the annual cost of maintaining MPAs as a function of their size, and of the degree of development of the country in question. We provide national costs of the 53 countries that jointly contribute 95% of global fisheries catch and, assuming that this type of subsidy, in a given country, cannot exceed 15% of the ex-vessel value of its fisheries catches, estimated a global MPA subsidy to fisheries of 870 million US$. Given that total subsidies to fisheries currently range from 30–34 billion US$ annually (without MPA costs), this amounts to only 2.5–2.8% of total subsidies to fisheries being devoted explicitly to the maintenance of the biodiversity that sustains them.     

The Decline of the Artisanal Fisheries in Mediterranean Coastal Areas: The Case of Cap de Creus (Cape Creus)

This article examines the sociocultural, economic, and environmental causes of the decline of the artisanal fisheries in the rocky coast of Cape Creus (NW Mediterranean) over the past decades. The changes that have occurred over time have favored trawlers, purse-seiners, shellfish fisheries, and tourism activities, to the detriment of artisanal fisheries. This article shows that the establishment of a marine reserve in 1998 could not reverse the observed decline in the artisanal fisheries. This raises the necessity of implementing a fishery management plan integrated into a coastal management plan, which should accompany the habitat protection. These plans could assist in the maintenance and the sustainable development of the artisanal fishing sector in Cape Creus as well as in other Mediterranean coastal areas where artisanal fisheries are also declining.     

Ecosystem-Based Fisheries Management in the Chesapeake: Developing Functional Indicators

A step-wise approach to implementing ecosystem-based fishery management (EBFM) offers both a tractable policy opportunity and feasible set of scientific responsibilities in ongoing efforts to incorporate ecosystem dynamics into fisheries management. This case study of oysters in the Chesapeake takes a regional approach and utilizes a fishery species that is a popular menu item, an important habitat for other fish species, and a cultural touchstone in the area. From grounding in ecosystem service policy goals and a survey of stakeholders from across industry, management, science, and community groups, we developed eight indicators that are meant to serve as a first-order check for EBFM. We evaluated these indicators based on data availability, spatial coverage of the whole region, and relevance to ecosystem service goals. Spatial integration of indicators addressing chemical, biological, social, and economic factors, allows identification of localities within the region that require more attention, either by scientists or policymakers, in order to meet EBFM goals.