Ecosystem services provided by the Baltic Sea ... - Naturvårdsverket

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SWEDISH ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY Report 5873 • Ecosystem services provided by the Baltic Sea and Skagerrak Economic Marine Information impaired hearing and navigation capacity in juvenile fish, thus dramatically altering the scene for all commercial fishery activities (76, 161) How to strengthen the ability of our seas to provide us with food Attaining environmental objectives In order to maintain fish stocks that can both supply humans with food fit for consumption and support other ecosystem services, fishery capacity has to be adapted to the extent of the resource. This may sound simple, but has so far not been achieved. In the revision of the Swedish environmental objective, the proposed deadline for ecological sustainability in Swedish fisheries is postponed to 2015 (82). The Swedish Government’s strategic plan for the fishery sector provides a review of current status and threats (including SWOT-analyses of the sector), but also a scheme for coming years (126). According to the plan, Swedish national priorities include that management decisions shall be based on recommendations from ICES and that the fishing fleet shall be adapted to the extent of the resource (thus addressing the issue of current over-capacity). Swedish Environmental Objective No 10: A Balanced Marine Environment, Flourishing Coastal Areas and Archipelagos - Interim target 5, 2008 “By 2008 catches of fish, including bycatches of juveniles will not exceed levels commensurate with maintaining fish stocks of a size and composition sufficient to ensure that the ecosystem's basic structure and functions are preserved. Populations will have been restored to levels well above biologically safe limits” Overcapacity is commonly addressed by restricting effort. However, effort reductions are frequently questioned, as they do not address the reasons for excessive resource extraction, i.e. the lack of ownership (162). In practice, fishermen generally circumvent restriction by increasing effort in other ways. If fishing time is restricted, gear is maximised. If the amount of landed fish is restricted, throwing overboard of small and thus less valuable fish will increase. Typically, the fishery adapts to the new conditions and the problems remain. In an attempt to reduce fishing effort, grants have been paid to fishermen who wish to dismantle their vessels. However, any effects of this action have been obscured by contemporary subsidies and the modernization of others vessels. Conclusively, fishery-related measures are not enough to strengthen the provision of food fit for consumption. More likely, a combination of measures are called for, including fishery measures, habitat restoration measures, and measures towards increased water quality (i.e. preventive and direct measures addressing eutrophication and pollution). A number of suggested measures will be discussed below, the socio- 101
SWEDISH ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY Report 5873 • Ecosystem services provided by the Baltic Sea and Skagerrak Economic Marine Information economic consequences of which have been investigated by SBF (144) as well as by Brady and Waldo (145). While certain measures to protect fishery resources can surely be taken in each respective country, a continued dialogue within the EU is required to influence the EU fishery policy. To add to the complexity of this issue, the Swedish National Heritage Board stresses the importance of commercial fishery to sustain coastal cultural environments (163). Finally, the question should be raised as to which sector is responsible of effectively protecting marine resources, the sector using the resources (represented in Sweden by the Ministry of Agriculture and the Board of Fisheries) or the one protecting the environment (Ministry of Environment and Environmental Protection Agency). Alternative fishery management The recent adoption of the ecosystem approach, also in the fishery management sector, is promising and will hopefully result in more hands-on measures. A valuable tool for marine resource managers may be what is commonly referred to as adaptive management, a process whereby decisions are made on the information available and in which the outcome of these decisions is continuously monitored. Where the outcome falls short of what was intended, management decisions should be readily altered. If there is a reasonable doubt of the sustainability of an extractive activity, the Precautionary Principle should be applied and measures taken to exert effective control over that activity. The use of region-specific quotas of uptake stimulates an indiscriminant race which has lead to the impoverishment of our fish resources. Alternative management may be an opening for a more responsible and sustainable resource use. Basic Principles of Ecosystem Management 'The overarching principles of ecosystem-based management of fisheries, aim to ensure that, despite variability, uncertainty and likely natural changes in the ecosystem, the capacity of the aquatic ecosystems to produce food, revenues, employment and, more generally, other essential services and livelihood, is maintained indefinitely for the benefit of the present and future generations, to cater both for human as well as ecosystem well-being. This implies conservation of ecosystem structures, processes and interactions through sustainable use.” Source: UN Atlas of the Ocean (52) Alternative ways to manage fisheries include rights-based management, which has been successfully introduced in other parts of the world (e.g. New Zealand, Iceland, and Norway). There are four major forms of rights-based management. Their respective benefits and the consequences they might have are discussed in detail elsewhere (145). Individual transferable quotas (ITQs) Territorial use right in fisheries (TURFs) 102
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