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Journal ArticleDOI

Are Territorial Use Rights in Fisheries (TURFs) sufficiently large

TL;DR: Empirical evidence from the TURFs deemed too small suggests that complementary management tools can enhance TURF performance when natural or social constraints prevent the construction of T URFs of optimal size.
About: This article is published in Marine Policy.The article was published on 2017-04-01 and is currently open access. It has received 16 citations till now.

Summary (3 min read)

1. Introduction

  • Territorial use rights in fishing provide one or more fishermen with exclusive access to particular fishing grounds.
  • The relationship between specific TURF characteristics and performance is poorly understood.
  • Theory suggests that for TURFs to successfully enable the social conditions that lead to sustainable harvests, fishermen should have the necessary security in the exclusivity of access [39] .
  • Previous efforts [46] have looked at the theoretical effects of TURF size on yield, showing that larger TURFs should decrease the spillover of adults and larvae to surrounding areas and thereby create greater incentives for TURF owners to take actions that enhance longer term yields.
  • Two potential reasons for this discrepancycooperation and imperfect informationare explored, thereby identifying important areas for extensions to current TURF design theory.

1.1. Case studies

  • The case studies were selected from the three largest existing systems of TURFs -México, Japan and Chile (Fig. 1 ).
  • In all cases, attention was restricted to TURFs currently in operation.
  • The analysis examines species that are the main target of the TURFs and therefore the main drivers of their design.

1.1.1. México

  • The study is focused on The Pacifico Norte fisheries and fishing cooperatives, located along the northern part of the Pacific side of Baja California Sur as well as Cedros and Natividad Islands.
  • These cooperatives form part of a larger federation and were granted exclusive fishing zones in 1992 [22] .
  • The TURFs provide the cooperatives with exclusive access for 20 years (with the possibility of renewal) to several resources.
  • Spiny lobster (Panulirus interruptus, Palinuridae) and abalone (Haliotis fulgens, Haliotidae) are the most economically important [22] .
  • The Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) certified the sustainability of the spiny lobster fishery in 2004 [21].

1.1.2. Japan

  • Two different TURF systems from Japan were analyzed: the walleye pollock (Theragra chalcogramma, Gadidae) TURFs in the Hiyama region, located around southwestern Hokkaido island, and the sakuraebi (Sergia lucens, Sergestidae), TURFs in Suruga Bay, central Japan.
  • The TURFs in the Hiyama region corresponds to the exclusive fishing grounds (or sections) of the Nishi and Esashi-Kaminokuni cities.
  • This region is the main spawning ground for the northern Japan Sea stock of walleye pollock.
  • The TURFs in Suruga bay provide exclusive access to the sakuraebi, a meso-pelagic shrimp [20] that appears to be sedentary in this region.
  • The TURFs belong to the Yui Harbor Fishery Cooperative Association (FCA) and the Ohigawamachi FCA.

1.1.3. Chile

  • TURFs were included in Chile's legal framework for the management of benthic resources in 1991, and they have been key in recovering collapsed fisheries.
  • Studies have found a dramatic increase in abundance and individual size of targeted species compared to open access areas [16] .
  • Currently Chile has 707 TURFs in different stages of operation.
  • The analysis is focused on TURFs that manage loco (Concholepas concholepas, Muricidae) one of the most economically important resources for artisanal fishermen [7] and the main driver of the creation of TURFs system [16] .
  • Operative TURFs ("estado operativo") were identified using data from SUBPESCA [43] .

2. Methods

  • The two patch bio-economic model from White and Costello [46] was applied to each of the case studies.
  • In the model, the patches (i and j) represent TURFs that are owned by fishing cooperatives, each of which perfectly coordinates its harvest decisions within the TURF, allowing it to act as a single agent.
  • Separate the effects of larval dispersal and adult movement, two scenarios were examined.
  • The kernels were estimated using the model of Siegel et al.
  • Fig. 2 shows the levels of spillover resulting from different sizes of TURFs for each species.

3. Results and discussion

  • TURFs are the only TURFs in the first category with respect to the dispersal capacity of green abalone.
  • These theoretical projections suggest the biomass of abalone should trend upward, but the high levels of expected spillover in the Mexican (for spiny lobster), Japanese and Chilean TURF systems should (a) increase competition among TURFs leading to a race to fish, and (b) compromise biomass and yields.
  • Still, although with the available information it is not possible to calculate how far all these systems are from MSY in practice, several lines of evidence suggest that TURFs help avoid both the race to fish and compromised yields in the case studies analyzed.
  • In Chile (Fig. 4E ) landings have remained constant after the creation of the first TURFs in 1997, and biomass has increased since TURFs became the only source of legally landed loco in 2001 [42] .

Case study

  • Proportion of larvae exported (c) sharing and stewardship [11, 27] .
  • In Suruga Bay the cooperatives have developed an income pooling arrangement that has helped this fishery become one of the most profitable in Japan [38] .
  • In Chile, although some cooperation among TURFs exists [7] , it is unlikely that it will solve the spillover problem for two main reasons.
  • Therefore, although cooperation and catch limits may be resolving many problems associated with spillover in several settings, the success of TURFs in the face of extensive larval dispersal into areas of open access fisheries, such as the case studies from Chile, remains unresolved.
  • First, fishermen may not be aware of the effects of larval movement.

4. Conclusion

  • The expected effects of fish dispersal capacity on yields suggest that the analyzed TURFs are small relative to both adult and larval movement.
  • In some cases, this spillover and its consequent incentives for fishermen behavior may be driving overharvesting.
  • In several other settings small TURFs may still be successful because of inter-TURF cooperation.
  • Ignoring such complications can lead to a poor understanding of these systems and therefore lead to inefficient designs.
  • As such, further development and extension of these models is warranted so that they can play a more important and beneficial role in guiding decisions on marine spatial planning.

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Citations
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Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: From all scenarios tested, only those that significantly reduce the high effort of the recreational fishing would allow the recovery of the most exploited stocks in the marine ecosystem in the short and medium-term.
Abstract: In this paper we consider what may happen to the marine ecosystem of Gran Canaria Island within the 2030 horizon, if fishing strategies different from those currently in place were implemented and we evaluate the effect of, for example, reduction of recreational-artisanal fishing, limitation of catches (e.g. total allowable catches, TAC), or spatial distribution of fishing sectors. From all scenarios tested, only those that significantly reduce the high effort of the recreational fishing would allow the recovery of the most exploited stocks in the marine ecosystem in the short and medium-term. Moreover, the best management strategy, in contribution to abundance, was obtained with a scenario that has a spatial partition of exploitation rights between artisanal and recreational fishermen and includes no-fishing zones (NTZ). This work is a first attempt to use spatial and temporal models to assess the effectiveness of alternative fishery policies in the Canary Islands.

6 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this article, a multidimensional scaling technique was applied to assess the sustainability status of 19 TURFs of the Biobio Region (Chile), using 51 transdisciplinary attributes relating to ecological, economic, social, among other dimensions.

5 citations

Book ChapterDOI
01 Oct 2020
TL;DR: The ocean covers about two-thirds of Earth's surface, and until sometime ago, it was considered an endless source of resources as mentioned in this paper. But the distorted advancement of technology was by far too steep in comparison to the pace of renewable resources recovery.
Abstract: The ocean covers about two-thirds of Earth's surface, and until sometime ago, it was considered an endless source of resources. The distorted advancement of technology was by far too steep in comparison to the pace of renewable resources recovery. Today, it is known that sustainability is fundamental in order to preserve sea resources and ensure their high resilience. Certain sectors are highly demanding in terms of human capital, and the tourism industry seems to be on the rise. Worldwide tourism keeps growing, and several phenomena have determined some trends, particularly related to recreational and cultural activities. Tourism inflicts a high pressure on coastal resources at different levels. Natural and social scientists strive to find solutions for the problem, whereas some other sectors of society try to reach solutions in terms of business opportunities. The tourism industry has a large stake in these issues because it is an important opportunity to take advantage of human capital and simultaneously educate people for more sustainable uses of sea resources.

4 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, a bioeconomic model is used to investigate whether TURF networks have the potential to address the challenge of managing mobile species and in locations with high human population densities.

3 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper , the authors estimated landings trends using long-term data (18 years) on landings of C. concholepas in most TURF areas of north-central Chile.

1 citations

References
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Journal ArticleDOI
24 Jul 2009-Science
TL;DR: A general framework is used to identify 10 subsystem variables that affect the likelihood of self-organization in efforts to achieve a sustainable SES.
Abstract: A major problem worldwide is the potential loss of fisheries, forests, and water resources Understanding of the processes that lead to improvements in or deterioration of natural resources is limited, because scientific disciplines use different concepts and languages to describe and explain complex social-ecological systems (SESs) Without a common framework to organize findings, isolated knowledge does not cumulate Until recently, accepted theory has assumed that resource users will never self-organize to maintain their resources and that governments must impose solutions Research in multiple disciplines, however, has found that some government policies accelerate resource destruction, whereas some resource users have invested their time and energy to achieve sustainability A general framework is used to identify 10 subsystem variables that affect the likelihood of self-organization in efforts to achieve a sustainable SES

5,442 citations


"Are Territorial Use Rights in Fishe..." refers background in this paper

  • ...The successful management of small-scale fisheries is often achieved by co-management arrangements [8,12], requiring a strong capacity for self-organization [17,28]....

    [...]

Journal ArticleDOI
Elinor Ostrom1
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors discuss two major empirical findings that begin to show how individuals achieve results that are better than rational by building conditions where reciprocity, reputation, and trust can help to overcome the strong temptations of short-run self-interest.
Abstract: Extensive empirical evidence and theoretical developments in multiple disciplines stimulate a need to expand the range of rational choice models to be used as a foundation for the study of social dilemmas and collective action. After an introduction to the problem of overcoming social dilemmas through collective action, the remainder of this article is divided into six sections. The first briefly reviews the theoretical predictions of currently accepted rational choice theory related to social dilemmas. The second section summarizes the challenges to the sole reliance on a complete model of rationality presented by extensive experimental research. In the third section, I discuss two major empirical findings that begin to show how individuals achieve results that are “better than rational” by building conditions where reciprocity, reputation, and trust can help to overcome the strong temptations of short-run self-interest. The fourth section raises the possibility of developing second-generation models of rationality, the fifth section develops an initial theoretical scenario, and the final section concludes by examining the implications of placing reciprocity, reputation, and trust at the core of an empirically tested, behavioral theory of collective action.

2,265 citations

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17 Feb 2011-Nature
TL;DR: Examining 130 co-managed fisheries in a wide range of countries with different degrees of development, ecosystems, fishing sectors and type of resources demonstrates the critical importance of prominent community leaders and robust social capital for successfully managing aquatic resources and securing the livelihoods of communities depending on them.
Abstract: general and multidisciplinary evaluations of co-management regimes and the conditions for social, economic and ecological success within such regimes are lacking. Here we examine 130 comanaged fisheries in a wide range of countries with different degrees of development, ecosystems, fishing sectors and type of resources. We identified strong leadership as the most important attribute contributing to success, followed by individual or community quotas, social cohesion and protected areas. Less important conditions included enforcement mechanisms, long-term management policies and life history of the resources. Fisheries were most successful when at least eight co-management attributes were present, showing a strong positive relationship between the number of these attributes and success, owing to redundancy in management regulations. Our results demonstrate the critical importance of

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22 Jun 2007-Science
TL;DR: The analysis suggests that management authorities need to develop legally enforceable and tested harvest strategies, coupled with appropriate rights-based incentives to the fishing community, for the future of fisheries to be better than their past.
Abstract: The public perception of fisheries is that they are in crisis and have been for some time. Numerous scientific and popular articles have pointed to the failures of fisheries management that have caused this crisis. These are widely accepted to be overcapacity in fishing fleets, a failure to take the ecosystem effects of fishing into account, and a failure to enforce unpalatable but necessary reductions in fishing effort on fishing fleets and communities. However, the claims of some analysts that there is an inevitable decline in the status of fisheries is, we believe, incorrect. There have been successes in fisheries management, and we argue that the tools for appropriate management exist. Unfortunately, they have not been implemented widely. Our analysis suggests that management authorities need to develop legally enforceable and tested harvest strategies, coupled with appropriate rights-based incentives to the fishing community, for the future of fisheries to be better than their past.

614 citations


"Are Territorial Use Rights in Fishe..." refers background in this paper

  • ...This type of measure could maintain harvests at constant levels when designed according to sound scientific information and appropriately enforced [4]....

    [...]

Frequently Asked Questions (11)
Q1. What have the authors contributed in "Are territorial use rights in fisheries (turfs) sufficiently large?" ?

This study explores the expected effects of existing TURF sizes on yields for TURF systems in Chile, México and Japan. These analyses suggest that either existing models of TURF performance are incomplete or that there is significant scope for improved performance with altered TURF designs. Considering these alternatives, empirical evidence from the TURFs deemed too small suggests that complementary management tools can enhance TURF performance when natural or social constraints prevent the construction of TURFs of optimal size. 

One hypothesis to reconcile these mismatches between predictions and practice is that cooperation among TURFs may account for the better than expected performance of these TURF systems. 

The successful management of small-scale fisheries is often achieved by co-management arrangements [8,12], requiring a strong capacity for self-organization [17,28]. 

The analysis is focused on the resulting Nash equilibrium, highlighting the consequences of competitive behavior expected to result from high levels of spillover (see [46] for further details). 

By securing exclusive access to marine resources, TURFs can enable the conditions necessary for the development of successful co-management schemes [16, 17, 30, 39]. 

They have existed for centuries in many coastal areas around the world and have been shown to be successful as a form of access right, particularly for small-scale fisheries [16, 29, 44]. 

Since larval export only affects future yields, and the delay can be quite substantial for slowly maturing species, the perceived costs may be greatly discounted relative to the immediate costs of adult dispersal. 

Since biomass calculations are not publicly available for Chilean loco, it was assumed that the assigned TAC [42], which is calculated in monitoring efforts in each TURF [16], represents 25% of the biomass. 

A lack of knowledge about larval dispersal may reduce the resulting incentives for overharvesting since, by ignoring the connection with outside areas, fishermen might not feel the need to rush for fish. 

Since the model explored here does not include age structure in the fish population, the impacts of larval dispersal have no lag and therefore may be greatly overestimated. 

Previous efforts [46] have looked at the theoretical effects of TURF size on yield, showing that larger TURFs should decrease the spillover of adults and larvae to surrounding areas and thereby create greater incentives for TURF owners to take actions that enhance longer term yields.