Assessment of Regional Fisheries Management Organizations Efforts toward the Precautionary Approach and Science-Based Stock Management and Compliance Measures

Mervin Ogawa and Joseph Anthony L. Reyes
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Mervin Ogawa: Biological Oceanography Group/Marine Biosphere Environment, Department of Natural Environmental Studies, Graduate School of Frontier Sciences (GSFS), The University of Tokyo, 5-1-5 Kashiwanoha, Kashiwa-shi room 672, Chiba 277-8564, Japan
Joseph Anthony L. Reyes: The International Institute for Industrial Environmental Economics (IIIEE), Lund University, Tegnérsplatsen 4, 223-50 Lund, Sweden

Sustainability, 2021, vol. 13, issue 15, 1-24

Abstract: The sustainable management of the ocean as a global food source has been prominent in recent debates due to the disproportionate rate of human consumption, depletion of fish stocks and shortcomings in conservation efforts. Criticisms from various sectors on the effectiveness of Regional Fisheries Management Organizations (RFMO) in relation to their mandates have prompted performance reviews (PRs) to evaluate their efforts in fisheries management. Among concerns are slow implementation of comprehensive harvest strategies which use science-based indicators and management principles. Moreover, RFMOs are expected to apply the precautionary approach, in the hopes of anticipating, monitoring, preventing and mitigating potential threats. The emergent themes are revealed through content analysis pertaining to cooperation and compliance being essential to fisheries management activities in conjunction with choosing the right operational approaches and the proper implementation of various fisheries regulations. Government mandates and stakeholder’s recommendations support fisheries management organizations to function more effectively. This article discusses the role of coercive, normative and mimetic pressures in RFMOs activities, as described in recent performance reviews. It then analyses how RFMOs have implemented the precautionary approach together with science-based stock management and compliance measures, utilizing recent PRs to assess progress on relevant recommendations.

Keywords: fisheries management; management performance; ocean governance; performance reviews; precautionary approach; science-based management (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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