scholarly journals Ecosystem-Based Fisheries Management

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jason S. Link ◽  
Anthony R. Marshak
Keyword(s):  
Fisheries Management ◽  
Lessons Learned ◽  
Global Ocean ◽  
Marine Resources ◽  
Environmental Forcing ◽  
Systems Ecology ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
National Perspective ◽  
Ecosystem Based Fisheries Management ◽  
The U.S

By examining a suite of over 90 indicators for nine major U.S. fishery ecosystem jurisdictions, Link and Marshak systematically track the progress the U.S. has made toward advancing ecosystem-based fisheries management (EBFM) and making it an operational reality. Covering a range of socioeconomic, governance, environmental forcing, major pressures, systems ecology, and fisheries criteria, they evaluate progress toward EBFM in the U.S., covering a wide range of longitude, latitude, and parts of major ocean basins, representing over 10% of the world’s ocean surface area. They view progress toward the implementation of EBFM as synonymous with improved management of living marine resources in general, and highlight lessons learned from a national perspective. Although US-centric, the lessons learned are applicable for all parts of the global ocean. Though much work remains, significant progress has been made to better address many of the challenges facing the sustainable management of our living marine resources.

The Northern Gulf of Mexico

2021 ◽  
pp. 283-342
Author(s):  
Jason S. Link ◽  
Anthony R. Marshak
Keyword(s):  
Gulf Of Mexico ◽  
Fisheries Management ◽  
Human Population ◽  
Oil Spills ◽  
Penaeid Shrimp ◽  
Marine Species ◽  
Eastern Oyster ◽  
Economic Benefits ◽  
Ecosystem Based Fisheries Management ◽  
The U.S

This chapter describes the Gulf of Mexico (GOM) region and the major issues facing this marine fisheries ecosystem, and presents some summary statistics related to the 90 indicators of ecosystem-based fisheries management (EBFM) criteria. The region contains high numbers of marine species comprising commercially and recreationally important invertebrate (e.g., penaeid shrimp, blue crab, eastern oyster) and finfish (e.g., red snapper, grouper, red drum, pelagic sportfishes) fisheries, which contribute heavily to national landings and seafood supply. The northern GOM contains one of the nation’s largest marine economies (among the eight U.S. regional marine ecosystems), which is dependent on offshore mineral extractions, tourism, marine transportation, living marine resources (LMRs), and other ocean uses. The GOM provides critical social and economic benefits to the region and the nation, is a region with high numbers of managed species, yet exploitation of these resources and an increasing human population makes the GOM an area subject to significant natural and human stressors, including the highest number of hurricanes in the U.S. Atlantic region, large expanses of hypoxic bottom water, overfishing, and major oil spills like the 2010 DWH event.

Methods for Characterizing and Examining Marine Fishery Ecosystems

2021 ◽  
pp. 35-46
Author(s):  
Jason S. Link ◽  
Anthony R. Marshak
Keyword(s):  
Fisheries Management ◽  
Ecological Systems ◽  
Data Sources ◽  
Marine Resources ◽  
Ranking Methods ◽  
Marine Fishery ◽  
Social Ecological Systems ◽  
Social Ecological ◽  
Time Periods ◽  
Ecosystem Based Fisheries Management

There are many variables associated with assessing marine fishery ecosystems. These include exploring facets of the living marine resources (LMRs), habitats, oceans, economics, and social considerations associated with marine social-ecological systems. Yet which ones can help track progress toward ecosystem-based fisheries management (EBFM) and, by extension, the efficacy of LMR management? This chapter provides a list of over 90 indicators we will use throughout the regional chapters, with documentation of data sources, time periods, and geographies covered, and the typical caveats associated with these data. This chapter also notes the methodology of how we synthesized all this information across all the regional chapters, noting the appropriate statistical and ranking methods we employed and the benchmarking criteria we considered to ascertain progress toward EBFM.

An Examination of Progress Toward Ecosystem-Based Management of Living Marine Resources in the U.S.

2021 ◽  
pp. 611-650
Author(s):  
Jason S. Link ◽  
Anthony R. Marshak
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Fisheries Management ◽  
Ecosystem Processes ◽  
Marine Ecosystems ◽  
Environmental Indicators ◽  
Reference Points ◽  
Marine Fishery ◽  
Ecosystem Level ◽  
Ecosystem Based Fisheries Management ◽  
The U.S

This chapter presents a cumulative examination of socioeconomic, governance, ecological, and environmental indicators among the eight major United States (U.S.) marine fishery ecosystems, 26 U.S. subregions, and 14 U.S. participatory regional fisheries management organization (RFMO) jurisdictions. Based on these indicators and as one might expect, some regions are making greater progress toward ecosystem-based fisheries management (EBFM) than others, but in all U.S. marine ecosystems there has been notable progress toward EBFM, albeit on different facets for different regions. Common areas of notable progress toward EBFM are observed around the nation in areas of implementing ecosystem-level planning and advancing understanding of ecosystem processes. Overall, it appears that more inherently productive marine ecosystems tend to have greater biomass, fisheries landings, proportional LMR-based employments, and fisheries revenue. More work remains in areas of ecosystem and community resilience, as well as broader consideration of more systematic measures for a fisheries ecosystem (especially ecosystem-level reference points). Several areas of common challenges and anticipated concerns are identified, with an eye toward focusing efforts on addressing these issues.

Introduction

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-34
Author(s):  
Jason S. Link ◽  
Anthony R. Marshak
Keyword(s):  
Fisheries Management ◽  
The Past ◽  
Road Map ◽  
Ecosystem Based Fisheries Management ◽  
The U.S

The underlying concepts of ecosystem-based fisheries management (EBFM) have been considered for over a century. This chapter discusses broad, disciplinary perspectives on EBFM, noting how the topic has advanced, morphed, and evolved from debates over “what and why” to “how.” Several definitions of EBFM are provided, with a discussion on the past couple of decades for how this concept has developed. A brief exploration of policies related to EBFM is undertaken, with particular emphasis on the U.S.’s EBFM Road Map. The rationale for and obstacles to EBFM are also discussed, with the aim to spur further discussion on how EBFM can be more fully implemented and the benefits from it realized.

System-level optimal yield: increased value, less risk, improved stability, and better fisheries

2018 ◽  
Vol 75 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-16 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jason S. Link
Keyword(s):  
Fisheries Management ◽  
Systematic Approach ◽  
System Level ◽  
Marine Resources ◽  
Past Century ◽  
Fisheries Science ◽  
The Past ◽  
Improved Stability ◽  
Portfolio Approach ◽  
Ecosystem Based Fisheries Management

The discipline and practice of fisheries science and management have had an useful, successful, and interesting history. The discipline has developed over the past century and a half into a very reductionist, highly quantitative, socially impactful endeavor. Yet given our collective successes in this field, some notable challenges remain. To address these challenges, many have proposed ecosystem-based fisheries management that takes a more systematic approach to the management of these living marine resources. Here I describe systems theory and associated constructs underlying system dynamics, elucidate how aggregate properties of systems can and have been used, contextualize these aggregate features relative to optimal yield, and note how this approach can produce useful estimates and outcomes for fisheries management. I explore two contrasting examples where this approach has and has not been considered, highlighting the benefits of applying such an approach. I conclude by discussing ways in which we might move forward with a portfolio approach for both the discipline and practice of fisheries science and management.

Regional Fisheries Management Organizations (RFMOs)

2021 ◽  
pp. 545-610
Author(s):  
Jason S. Link ◽  
Anthony R. Marshak
Keyword(s):  
Fisheries Management ◽  
Fisheries Resources ◽  
Scientific Organizations ◽  
The Us ◽  
Regional Fisheries Management Organizations ◽  
The Antarctic ◽  
Ecosystem Based Fisheries Management ◽  
The U.S ◽  
Regional Fisheries Management ◽  
High Seas

The U.S. participates in transboundary management of migratory and high seas fisheries species as a signatory to 14 major intergovernmental conventions, treaties, and regional fisheries management organizations (RFMOs) throughout the Atlantic and Pacific basins. The U.S. is also a participant in several other international living marine resource (LMR), conservation, and scientific organizations. The reason is that in addition to domestic fisheries resources contained within its EEZ, international, transboundary, and high seas fisheries contribute significantly to U.S. fisheries landings, revenue, and LMR-based employments. This chapter briefly describes those participatory RFMOs and related organizations, and presents some summary statistics related to the ecosystem-based fisheries management (EBFM) criteria noted throughout the regional chapters in this book. Significant progress has been made toward greater understanding of Atlantic and Pacific ecosystems within RFMO jurisdictions, but as expected, generally, progress toward EBFM in RFMOs has been slower than in other regions within the US EEZ, with several challenges remaining unique to what are often taxa-oriented organizations. Given that advances toward EBFM have been occurring throughout several RFMOs, with specific progress of adopting ecosystem considerations occurring in various jurisdictions, particularly in the Antarctic.

scholarly journals Physical processes mediating climate change impacts on regional sea ecosystems

2014 ◽  
Vol 11 (2) ◽  
pp. 1909-1975 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. Holt ◽  
C. Schrum ◽  
H. Cannaby ◽  
U. Daewel ◽  
I. Allen ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Primary Production ◽  
Barents Sea ◽  
Climate Change Impacts ◽  
Open Ocean ◽  
Lessons Learned ◽  
Global Ocean ◽  
Physical Processes ◽  
First Order ◽  
Wide Range

Abstract. Regional seas are exceptionally vulnerable to climate change, yet are the most directly societally important regions of the marine environment. The combination of widely varying conditions of mixing, forcing, geography (coastline and bathymetry) and exposure to the open-ocean makes these seas subject to a wide range of physical processes that mediates how large scale climate change impacts on these seas' ecosystems. In this paper we explore these physical processes and their biophysical interactions, and the effects of atmospheric, oceanic and terrestrial change on them. Our aim is to elucidate the controlling dynamical processes and how these vary between and within regional seas. We focus on primary production and consider the potential climatic impacts: on long term changes in elemental budgets, on seasonal and mesoscale processes that control phytoplankton's exposure to light and nutrients, and briefly on direct temperature response. We draw examples from the MEECE FP7 project and five regional models systems using ECOSMO, POLCOMS-ERSEM and BIMS_ECO. These cover the Barents Sea, Black Sea, Baltic Sea, North Sea, Celtic Seas, and a region of the Northeast Atlantic, using a common global ocean-atmosphere model as forcing. We consider a common analysis approach, and a more detailed analysis of the POLCOMS-ERSEM model. Comparing projections for the end of the 21st century with mean present day conditions, these simulations generally show an increase in seasonal and permanent stratification (where present). However, the first order (low- and mid-latitude) effect in the open ocean projections of increased permanent stratification leading to reduced nutrient levels, and so to reduced primary production, is largely absent, except in the NE Atlantic. Instead, results show a highly heterogeneous picture of positive and negative change arising from the varying mixing and circulation conditions. Even in the two highly stratified, deep water seas (Black and Baltic Seas) the increase in stratification is not seen as a first order control on primary production. The approaches to downscaled experiment design and lessons learned from the MEECE project are also discussed.

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