1.
Fish, Fisheries & Ecosystems:
Reconciling management objectives.
Mark Dickey-Collas
@DickeyCollas

2.
ICES
an intergovernmental science organisation
Provides independent,
transparent, quality assured
evidence for marine
management
Holds world leading centre of
North Atlantic data, managed
to international standards
Coordinates the biggest ship-
based monitoring & biological
sampling programme in the
Atlantic
Runs a curiosity driven
science programme preparing
for future societal evidence
needs

3.
A knowledge provider
to decision makers
Providing best available, scientific
advice & cooperate with
international & national authorities.
Over 240 fish stocks, bycatch advice,
deep sea impact, marine protected
areas and roughly 25 specific
requests per year.

4.
Focused knowledge
building
ICES science plan 2018

5.
Where are we with
fisheries management?
State of European
fish stocks & fisheries

6.
Using FAO catch data, thus including data poor
Biomass of fish stocks
in relation to objectives

7.
The situation is changing

8.
What brought about this change?
Managers codified more
knowledge & constructed
a framework
http://www.fao.org/3/a-v9878e.htm 1992

9.
Legislation for European framework
International agreements and policies:
• UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS 1982) -MSY
• UN Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED, 1992) -precautionary approach
• UN Straddling Fish Stocks Agreement of 1995 (UNFSA 1995) - precautionary approach & MSY
• Convention on Biological Diversity (UN CBD, 1992) - ecosystem approach
• Johannesburg Declaration of the World Summit on Sustainable Development (WSSD UN 2002)-
ecosystem approach & MSY
Important for EU CFP reform 2002 – harvest control rules introduced for largest fisheries.

10.
10
10Trade and Agriculture Directorate | Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) | www.oecd.org/tad | tad.contact@oecd.org
0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%
Individual effort quotas (IEQ)
Non-transferrable individual quotas
Individual transferrable quotas (ITQs)
Harvest control rules
Total allowable catch (TAC)
Management or recovery plans
Use of stocks management instruments has increased since 2005
Less stocks managed with:More stocks managed with:
% countries reporting change in number of stocks managed with:

11.
Frameworks set out in management plans

12.
Management plans in the ICES area are tested
using simulations
e.g. simulations of Atlantic
mackerel management strategy
at different fishing mortalities

13.
So it appears that we have everything sorted, but let’s
look at the EU Common Fisheries Policy (2014)
And that’s just one policy
• The EU Integrated Maritime
Policy (IMP)
• Blue Growth Strategy (BG)
• EU Marine Strategy Framework
Directive (MSFD) 2008
• Maritime Spatial Planning (MSP)
directive 2014.

14.
EU Marine Strategy
Framework Directive
(MSFD) descriptors
• step wise process
• Good Environmental Status (GES)
• normative values

15.
All of these require that decision making should
be evidence based…
Enter into the arena the researcher/scientist, again…
But their role is not to decide
between objectives or set the
targets for society’s values

16.
ICES workshop on balancing economic,
social & institutional objectives
• Similar high order objectives in EU, US & Canada
• Often in the preamble of legislation & not operational
• Usually require trade-offs to reconcile objectives
-

17.
Is it all about economics or jobs?
Allemansrätten – the right to experience nature
“In Sweden, public access to natural resources & the preservation of cultural values are
core goals. More attention is given to these goals than maximizing the commercial
economic value of marine resources.”

18.
Conservation & fisheries objectives
bycatch mixed fisheries competition for space
fleet dynamics ecosystem impacts equitable processes
SOLUTION: ecosystem approach to fisheries management

19.
Why ecosystem based management (EBM)?
to promote biodiversity
conservation, and explore
consequences of trade-offs in the
management of marine ecosystems
Marshak et al. 2016
In law, e.g. USA, Russia, Canada, Norway, EU, Int. treaties etc

20.
Mandates for EBM in Atlantic
https://atlanticresource.org/aora/sites/default/files/Gallery
Files/Publications/2018-03_EA2OHS_mandates_report.pdf
There are adequate, extant mandates to execute EBM.
In all jurisdictions, nearly all of the ocean uses, goods and services,
pressures, and stressors have some mandate coverage.
There is no legal basis hindering EBM, and
the potential benefits emphasize the urgency and
need for greater implementation.

21.
Components of EBM
Source Ingrid van Putten (CSIRO)

22.
ICES – fisheries benthic impact
Landing Value SAR Benthic Impact
(kg’s) (EUR) (swept area ratio) (per habitat)
Example: Fishing Footprint…

23.
ICES economic trade-offs
Value landed when 10% of lowest fished area
removed (2012-2015)
http://www.ices.dk/sites/pub/Publication%20Reports/Advice/2017/Special_requests/eu.2017.13.pdf
Spatial analysis of economic value of seabed impact
Process included exploration of
concepts with stakeholders

24.
Be careful though…
Priorities for EBFM are subjective,
Top 5 from list of 26
Science Literature Fishing industry
1 Consider Ecosystem Connections Sustainability
2 Appropriate Spatial & Temporal Scales Develop Long -Term Objectives
3 Adaptive Management Stakeholder Involvement
4 Use of Scientific Knowledge Use of All Forms of Knowledge
Long et al. 2016. Key principles of ecosystem-based management: Fishers perspective

25.
EBM means you should account for ecosystem
dynamics too
• Carrying capacity & productivity
• Density effects
• Shifts in distributions & behaviour

26.
Shift of productivity of herring and other forage fish in ≈1993
North Sea herring
Modelled biomass of North Sea
forage fish with zero fishing
Clupea harengus
Trisopterus esmarkii
Ammodytes marinus
Sprattus sprattus
Clausen et al 2018. J Applied Ecology

27.
Changes in distribution.
www.ices.dk/community/groups/Pages/WKFISHDISH.aspx
Data analysis - surveys
● presence/absence
● relative abundance trends
● centre of gravity
Review information on change in distribution
Consider published drivers

28.
Social indicators
• Well-being
• Values
Hicks et al 2016 Biedenweg et al 2016
• Agency
• Inequality

29.
Top pressures on the ecosystem
http://www.ices.dk/community/advisory-process/Pages/Ecosystem-overviews.aspx

30.
Engaging as a researcher in EBM
• It will take much longer than expected, always frustrating, may
not succeed resulting in great pain.
• The dialogue/discourse will challenge our academic training; and
we must learn how to work deliberately with what we perceive
as imperfection.
• Establish equitable partnerships; listening to others underpins
our capacity to connect, build trust, adapt and evolve.
• The drive for simple communication may result in misleading
answers but as everyone is always busy, you need to reduce the
workload on partners.
Inspired by Beth Fulton, Rosa Barciela, Marta Ballesteros, Poul Degnbol

31.
Data for science for society - principles
Findable - data have a doi (either another source or minted by ICES) and be described in a
data catalogue (either outside or in an ICES database) with ISO standards metadata.
Accessible - there must be a link or defined provision of the resource. Access rights be
clear, and could include a data usage license. Prefer the data resource conforms to the
ICES data policy.
Interoperable - data should reference international standards and units. Have a clear
vocabulary and internationally recognised download formats.
Reusable - auxiliary data (manuals and protocols) that describe the methods used must be
included. Including the evidence of how the data were collected and reported.

32.
Shifting arena for science
Holsman et al 2017 & ICES