A System Dynamics Approach for Improved Management of the Indian Mackerel Fishery in Peninsular Malaysia

Illisriyani Ismail (), Pierre Failler, Antaya March and Andy Thorpe
Additional contact information
Illisriyani Ismail: International Institute of Aquaculture & Aquatic Sciences, Universiti Putra Malaysia, Port Dickson 70150, Malaysia
Pierre Failler: Blue Governance Centre, University of Portsmouth, Portsmouth PO1 3DE, UK
Antaya March: Blue Governance Centre, University of Portsmouth, Portsmouth PO1 3DE, UK

Sustainability, 2022, vol. 14, issue 21, 1-21

Abstract: This paper presents the results of applying the system dynamics model to the Indian mackerel fishery (IM) in Malaysia. The main objective of this paper is to explore a more holistic approach to modelling options for the difficult task of managing an open access fishery. To this end, a system dynamics model was used to provide a general framework that incorporates several interacting factors that influence the management of the fishery. Such a model, which combines both biological and economic data, is appropriate for fisheries management practise. In this case, three policy scenarios (in addition to a business-as-usual scenario) based on a reduction in the number of boats fishing are used to simulate the behaviour of the stock IM. The results show that the optimal CPUE level is achieved with a 25% reduction in the total number of boats. In this scenario, a biomass of 127,432 metric tonnes IM of adult fish is predicted in 2050, with a catch of 32,884 tonnes for 2698 boats. In comparison, the biomass of IM in 2016 is 112,384 tonnes with a catch of 32,454 tonnes for 4616 boats. Based on these results, we can determine for the first time the optimal level of fishing capacity to ensure the sustainability of the fishery at IM. Overall, this work introduces a new method for simulating Malaysian fisheries data and new modelling methods that are not widely used in the Malaysian fisheries modelling field. The model benefits from current management and data availability.

Keywords: catch; mackerel; Malaysia; stock; system dynamics (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations:

Downloads: (external link)
https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/14/21/14190/pdf (application/pdf)
https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/14/21/14190/ (text/html)

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:14:y:2022:i:21:p:14190-:d:958626

Access Statistics for this article

Sustainability is currently edited by Ms. Alexandra Wu

More articles in Sustainability from MDPI
Bibliographic data for series maintained by MDPI Indexing Manager ().