| Ecosystem approach to fisheries management |
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| the development of integrated indicators of sustainability. Aquatic ecosystems, including rivers, lakes and inland seas, flood plains, coastal lagoons and estuaries, coastal shelves and open oceans cover a very large part of the earth's surface and, among other amenities, goods and services, sustain the production of fisheries and aquaculture. They yield about 120 million tonnes of fish and fishery products per year - the largest source of wild protein - and provide a livelihood to as many as 140 million people. Fisheries and aquaculture, from algae, ascidians and sea-cucumbers to molluscs, crustaceans, fish and marine mammals, exploit a large diversity or organisms. |
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| Integrated Irrigation-Aquaculture (IIA); |
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| responsible fisheries management. |
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| While all of them represent advances over pure single-species fisheries management, none of them has included all the ingredients that may be required to implement a successful system of ecosystem-based management. |
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| Based on experience gained during 50 years of fisheries management, on the set of principles and points of operational guidance for ecosystem management recommended by the 5th Conference of the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), and on other instruments dealing with the subject, the following elements emerge as the foundations and components of an ecosystem management approach to fisheries and aquaculture: |
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| Recognizing that management objectives are a matter of societal choice; |
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| Involving all stakeholders in knowledge-sharing, decision-making and management partnership; |
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| Decentralizng decision and action at the lowest appropriate level (subsidiary); |
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| Avoiding irreversible ecosystem impacts from fisheries; |
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| Reducing reversible impacts to the minimum possible (e.g. bycatch and discards); |
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| Considering transboundary impacts of fisheries on adjacent or other ecosystems; |
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| Fisheries ecosystems are unavoidably affected by fisheries activities that imply a selective removal of part of the natural productivity for human subsistence and development. However, undesirable fishing practices such as overfishing and use of destructive methods are unduly affecting these precious ecosystems, calling for urgent corrective action. |
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| Lobbying to reduce negative impacts of non-fishery activities on aquatic ecosystems; |
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| Understanding of ecosystems in an economic context; |
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| Introducing ecological accounting into fisheries management; |
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| Conserving ecosystem biodiversity, structure and functioning; |
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| Adopting the concept of Protected Areas (e.g. Marine Protected Areas - MPAs) Matching fisheries management system boundaries with ecosystems boundaries; |
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| Improving collaboration between environmental and fishery management organizations; |
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| Undertaking action at the appropriate scale; |
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| Setting management objectives both for the short- and long term; |
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| Ensuring balance between conservation and responsible use; |
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| Recognizing that ecosystem variability and changes are inevitable; |
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| Except in the high seas, these ecosystems are also usually used for other purposes such as conservation (e.g. wetlands), forestry (e.g. mangroves), agriculture (e.g. floodplains) and human settlements (e.g. coastal areas). Unfortunately, they are also, most often, the ultimate recipients of the pollution produced by human settlements and industrial activities, inland, on the coastal area as well as at sea. Even the most remote areas (e.g. deep ocean and polar seas) are now affected, seriously putting in question the sustainability of present practices and the present ecosystems resources to future generations. |
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| Taking account of both scientific and traditional knowledge; |
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| Improving knowledge on ecosystem impacts and their reversibility; |
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| Adopting participatory and rapid appraisal research methods; |
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| Mobilizing all scientific disciplines; |
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| Ensuring quality and independence of scientific advice; |
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| Recognizing the pervasive uncertainty and, as a consequence , Applying widely the precautionary approach and, Adopting adaptive management strategies; |
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| Ensuring equitable allocation of benefits, as a condition for compliance; |
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| Establishing indicators of sustainable ecosystem use to monitor management performance; |
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| Ensuring transparency, public awareness, and consensus building; |
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| Establishing effective conflict resolution and enforcement mechanisms; Establishing explicit and enforceable rights to ecosystems resources. |
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| Environmental NGOs have been particularly active in drawing attention to ecosystem issues by raising awareness of governments and society and have proposed a number of basic principles for ecosystem conservation. All key international agreements adopted over the last two decades, including the 1995 FAO Code of Conduct for Responsible Fisheries, stress the need to generalise the adoption of ecosystem-based management approaches. In most if not all countries, much progress in ecosystem research and institutional development are still needed before the implications of the approach are fully understood and credible management strategies can be adopted and effectively implemented. |
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| Relevant international agreements and frameworks: |
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| 1971 Ramsar Convention on Wetlands of International Importance |
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| 1972 Stockholm Declaration of the UN Conference on the Human Development |
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| 1973 Convention on International Trade of Endangered Species of Wild Flora and Fauna (CITES) |
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| 1979 Bonn Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals |
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| 1980 Convention for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources (CCAMLR) |
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| 1982 UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) |
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| 1991 Global Environment Facility (GEF) |
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| 1992 Declaration of the UN Conference on Environment and Development |
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| 1992 Helsinki Convention on the Protection and Use of Transboundary Watercourses |
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| The overarching principles of ecosystem-based management of fisheriesare an extension of the conventional principles for sustainable fisheries development to cover the ecosystem as a whole. They aim to ensure that, despite variability, uncertainty and likely natural changes in the ecosystem, the capacity of the aquatic ecosystems to produce fish food, revenues, employment and, more generally, other essential services and livelihood, is maintained indefinitely for the benefit of the present and future generations. |
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| 1992 UN Commission on Sustainable Development (CSD) |
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| 1995 UN Agreement on Straddling and Highly Migratory Fish Stocks |
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| 1995 Code of Conduct for Responsible Fisheries |
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| Convention on Biological Diversity |
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| Jakarta Mandate on Marine and Coastal Biological Diversity |
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| UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCC) |
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| UNEP Regional Seas Conventions |
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| The main implication is the need to cater both for human as well as ecosystem well-being. This implies conservation of ecosystem structures, processes and interactions through sustainable use. This means considering a range of frequently conflicting objectives where the needed consensus may not be achievable without equitable distribution of benefits. |
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| Various management concepts and approaches have been proposed during the last half-century as a basis for some sort of "ecosystem management": |
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| Integrated Coastal Areas Management (ICAM); integrated watershed management; |
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| Integrated Aquaculture-Agriculture (IAA); |
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| | | Title | The First Program Development Plan for Ecosystem-Based Fisheries Management from US NOAA/NMFS
( DOCUMENT )
| | Author(s) / Editor(s) | G.D. Sharp, Churchill Grimes, John Everett, and NMFS and Regional Council staff | | Description | The document is a brief general outline for implementation of a more holistic Ecological System-oriented monitoring, observation and related fisheries management plan that outlines what needs to be monitored, and what institutional partnerships would be most fruitful to succeed | | Keywords | ECOSYSTEM BASED; FISHERIES MONITORING; FISHERIES MANAGEMENT; PROGRAM DEVELOPMENT PLAN | | Geography Keywords | US EEZ FISHERIES | | Content Language(s) | English | |
| Web Address | http://sharpgary.org/EcoSys-BasedFMP.pdf | |
| Type of Document | Bibliography (unpublished) | | Document Status | Finished | |
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| Publication Date | October 1988 | | Hard Copy Availability | email gsharp@montereybay.com for details | |
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| Additional Links | http://sharpgary.org/FisheryTimeline.html | |
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Gary Sharp
