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Sustainable Marine Fisheries Management

A special issue of Sustainability (ISSN 2071-1050). This special issue belongs to the section "Sustainability, Biodiversity and Conservation".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (26 March 2023) | Viewed by 10640

Special Issue Editor


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Guest Editor
Centro Oceanográfico de Málaga, Instituto Español de Oceanografía, Fuengirola, Corazón de María, 28002 Madrid, Spain
Interests: bycatch; climate variability; ecosystem approach; fisheries management
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Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Marine fisheries provide animal proteins, which are an important part of world food security, especially for many developing countries. Moreover, fishing activity is an important economic sector for coastal countries worldwide. Nevertheless, there are factors that threaten the sustainability of fisheries over the long term, among them overfishing, depletion to the marine ecosystem, and climate change. In this context, recent studies suggest that many fish stocks are overfished in countries with a lack of fishery data and limited fishery management. Therefore, deepening the knowledge of fishery science and management tools is essential to ensure the sustainability of fisheries worldwide. Moreover, mitigating the damages of marine exploitation is crucial to maintain the resilience of marine ecosystems. In this sense, it is particularly important to developi a methodology to reduce bycatch and favor the post-release survival of the most sensitive species. In addition, local abundance of some species and their catchability could respond in the short and long term to climate variability. Thus, understanding the response patterns of exploited stocks to this variability is a necessary challenge to achieve sustainable management of fisheries in a changing world.

This Special Issue is focused on research, case studies, methodology improvement, and reviews that examine the issues of:

- Bycatch;

- Discards;

- Ecosystem approach;

- Effect of the climate variability in fisheries;

- Fishery economy;

- Fisheries management;

- Fishing gears improvement and fisheries technology;

- Industrial fisheries;

- Marine policy;

- Marine protected areas;

- Small-scale fisheries;

- Stock assessment.

Dr. Jose Carlos Báez
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

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Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Sustainability is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • bycatch
  • climate variability
  • ecosystem approach
  • fisheries management
  • marine protected areas
  • stock assessment

Published Papers (4 papers)

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Research

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21 pages, 2563 KiB  
Article
Looking for a Simple Assessment Tool for a Complex Task: Short-Term Evaluation of Changes in Fisheries Management Measures in the Pomo/Jabuka Pits Area (Central Adriatic Sea)
by Matteo Chiarini, Stefano Guicciardi, Lorenzo Zacchetti, Filippo Domenichetti, Giovanni Canduci, Silvia Angelini, Andrea Belardinelli, Camilla Croci, Giordano Giuliani, Paolo Scarpini, Alberto Santojanni, Damir Medvešek, Igor Isajlovic, Nedo Vrgoč and Michela Martinelli
Sustainability 2022, 14(13), 7742; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/su14137742 - 24 Jun 2022
Cited by 5 | Viewed by 1874
Abstract
A Before–Intermediate–After Multiple Sites (BIAMS) analysis, namely a modified version of the Before–After–Control–Impact (BACI) approach, was used to evaluate the possible effects of fishery management measures implemented in the Pomo/Jabuka Pits area, a historically highly exploited ground for Italian and Croatian fisheries, whose [...] Read more.
A Before–Intermediate–After Multiple Sites (BIAMS) analysis, namely a modified version of the Before–After–Control–Impact (BACI) approach, was used to evaluate the possible effects of fishery management measures implemented in the Pomo/Jabuka Pits area, a historically highly exploited ground for Italian and Croatian fisheries, whose impact may have contributed over the years to the modification of the ecosystem. Since 2015, the area was subject to fishing regulations changing the type of restrictions over time and space, until the definitive establishment in 2018 of a Fishery Restricted Area. These changes in the regulatory regime result in complex signals to be interpreted. The analysis was carried out on abundance indices (i.e., kg/km2 and N/km2) of five commercially or ecologically relevant species, obtained in the period 2012–2019 from two annual trawl surveys. BIAMS was based on the selection of a Closure factor, declined in three levels (i.e., BEFORE/INTERMEDIATE/AFTER) and accounting for regulation changes in time, and on three adjacent strata (i.e., “A”, “B”, and “ext ITA”) a posteriori determined according to the latest regulations. BIAMS allowed us to identify early effects (i.e., changes in abundances), overcoming the unavailability of a proper independent control site; furthermore, the selection of adjacent strata allowed the inference of possible interactions among them. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sustainable Marine Fisheries Management)
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Review

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19 pages, 2442 KiB  
Review
Avoiding “Paper Parks”: A Global Literature Review on Socioeconomic Factors Underpinning the Effectiveness of Marine Protected Areas
by Antonio Di Cintio, Federico Niccolini, Sara Scipioni and Fabio Bulleri
Sustainability 2023, 15(5), 4464; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/su15054464 - 02 Mar 2023
Cited by 4 | Viewed by 2686
Abstract
Marine protected areas (MPAs) are a common management tool for preserving marine biodiversity and halting resource depletion. Despite the number of MPAs rapidly increasing worldwide, there are concerns over the full achievement of their objectives. Indeed, in some cases—the phenomenon of so-called “paper [...] Read more.
Marine protected areas (MPAs) are a common management tool for preserving marine biodiversity and halting resource depletion. Despite the number of MPAs rapidly increasing worldwide, there are concerns over the full achievement of their objectives. Indeed, in some cases—the phenomenon of so-called “paper parks”—protected areas totally fail to achieve their conservation and socioeconomic targets. Therefore, identifying the factors underpinning MPA success or failure is crucial to increase their effectiveness. To achieve this goal, we performed a global literature review on the socioeconomic factors that managers should pursue to enhance MPA effectiveness on a global scale. A search of the Scopus database, using strings of keywords connected by Boolean operators, generated a batch of 715 items, out of which 68 were retained after the application of inclusion/exclusion criteria. Six other articles were added through the scanning of the literature cited in selected papers. We grouped MPA success-factors into 13 main groups and ranked them according to the frequency of citation in the literature. Our findings identify stakeholder involvement, increasing communication and awareness between specific stakeholder groups, as well as ensuring appropriate enforcement and monitoring, control and surveillance, as the leading factors for MPA success. Our results will assist in the process of upcoming global expansion of MPAs, thus contributing to improving conservation of marine biodiversity and associated livelihoods. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sustainable Marine Fisheries Management)
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16 pages, 594 KiB  
Review
Implementing Adaptive Management within a Fisheries Management Context: A Systematic Literature Review Revealing Gaps, Challenges, and Ways Forward
by Elizabeth Edmondson and Lucia Fanning
Sustainability 2022, 14(12), 7249; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/su14127249 - 13 Jun 2022
Cited by 6 | Viewed by 2350
Abstract
Adaptive management acknowledges uncertainty and complexity in socio–ecological systems, providing a structured approach for learning and for making the needed management adjustments. Despite its utility, there are few examples of how adaptive management has been applied. To identify the extent to which implementation [...] Read more.
Adaptive management acknowledges uncertainty and complexity in socio–ecological systems, providing a structured approach for learning and for making the needed management adjustments. Despite its utility, there are few examples of how adaptive management has been applied. To identify the extent to which implementation aligns with theory, we conducted a systematic literature review of adaptive management in a fisheries management context to compare how adaptive management was defined, applied and what was deemed important for implementation. Following the PRISMA approach for meta-synthesis, 20 papers were identified and reviewed against the eight key components of adaptive management. Across the case studies, we found ambiguity in the definitions of adaptive management, a varying emphasis on the different components of adaptive management and barriers to adaptive management that stemmed from both outside the process and as part of the iterative cycle. Our analysis suggests that for adaptive management to be implemented in other natural resource management situations, consideration should be given to the active and ongoing participation of those outside management, integrating socio–economic values into decision-making, and ensuring a monitoring plan is implemented. Additionally, attention should be paid to having the time and ability to detect the effects of management actions against a broader background of change. This analysis offers insights into how management support can lead to more effective objective-based decisions, thereby improving management over time. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sustainable Marine Fisheries Management)
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15 pages, 1076 KiB  
Review
Data Provision for Science-Based FAD Fishery Management: Spanish FAD Management Plan as a Case Study
by José Carlos Báez, Santiago Déniz, María Lourdes Ramos, Maitane Grande, Jon Ruiz, Hilario Murua, Josu Santiago, Ana Justel-Rubio, Miguel Herrera, Isadora Moniz, Jon Lopez, Pedro José Pascual-Alayón, Anertz Muniategi, Nekane Alzorriz, Marta González-Carballo, Vanessa Rojo and Francisco Abascal
Sustainability 2022, 14(6), 3278; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/su14063278 - 10 Mar 2022
Cited by 4 | Viewed by 2335
Abstract
The use of fish aggregating devices (FADs) in tropical tuna fisheries has increased significantly during recent decades. Concurrently, concern about juvenile tuna mortality, bycatch, and marine debris associated with FAD fisheries increased, and this led to the implementation of FAD management measures and [...] Read more.
The use of fish aggregating devices (FADs) in tropical tuna fisheries has increased significantly during recent decades. Concurrently, concern about juvenile tuna mortality, bycatch, and marine debris associated with FAD fisheries increased, and this led to the implementation of FAD management measures and more sustainable designs (e.g., non-entangling or biodegradable FADs, limits on active FADs, etc.). This document reviews data collection and reporting requirements of tuna-Regional Fisheries Management Organizations (t-RFMOs) on drifting FADs and summarizes the work carried out since 2010 under the Spanish FAD management plan to create an adequate standard data collection aimed at improving science-based decision making. The aim of this study is to assist in the strengthening of data collection systems through: (1) a review of the existing data requirements, (2) a review of the status of FAD data collection worldwide and identification of data gaps, and (3) recommendations aimed at improving FAD management through the strengthening of FAD data requirements. Due to the complexities of data collection, we summarize the difficulties faced when processing the data and propose concrete and practical solutions to improve both the data collection system and information quality. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sustainable Marine Fisheries Management)
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