ghana climate change vulnerability and adaptation assessment

upwelling strength) involved in regulating pelagic productivity (Koranteng, 2004; Koranteng and McGlade, 2004;Perry and Sumaila, 2007). Notably the sizeable dip in pelagic catches from 1972 to the mid 1980s coincides with anear-complete crash andsubsequent slow recoveryof the roundd sardinella (Sardinella aurita) ) (Koranteng, 2004), aprimary target and mainstay of the pelagic fishery. Since 2000, total catches showed a continuing declining trend,driven largely by a marked decrease inseveral species in the pelagic fish catch, which is offset somewhat by a risein catch ofdemersal species.Source: FAOFishStat Plus, compiled by Finegold et al., 2010Figure 6.5 Total reported catches by major group from Ghana’s marine fisheriesPelagic stocks: Because they are not associated withseafloor habitats, but relyy totally on oceanic productivity, thedynamics and therefore managementof pelagic fishresources iss complex. Pelagic species tend to be fastswimming, schooling species which migrate widely, often crossing national boundaries. Effective managementmust be applied at a broad spatial scale, encompassing neighboring regions, districts, and countries sharing theresource. This represents an added level of vulnerability to pelagic resource sustainability.All fleet segments exploit the pelagic fishery resource in Ghana although catches by industrial trawlers are largelyincidental.Small, schooling species (sardinellas, anchovies, mackerel) make upthe vast majority of this catch, butthe small pelagic catch is currently at its lowest level since the 1970s (Figure 6.5). Given theinherent,environmentally driven variability of the small pelagic resource (e.g., Wiafe et al. 2008), the current decline cannotwith certainty be assigned to a fishery-driven stockcollapse that will have lasting effect. However, the mostsustained period of decline is currently occurring inthis resourcee since heavy exploitation began. The declinecoincides directly with the uptake of light fishing (discussed below), which massively increased the pressure onthis resource.Decline incatch of small pelagic species since the mid-1980s (Figure 6.6) is not caused by the crash of onedominant species (as in the 1970s case with round sardinella), but rather of simultaneous decline of threee (of four)main small pelagic species. Interviewswith fishers in the Western Region (Finegold et al., 2010) and CentralRegion (pers. obs.) indicate this trendcontinued in2010-2011.GHANA CLIMATE CHANGE VULNERABILITY AND ADAPTATION ASSESSMENT 109