AMURE - Centre de droit et d'économie de la mer

In the EU, the mapping and assessment of ecosystems and their services, abbreviated to MAES, is seen as a key action for the advancement of biodiversity objectives, and also to inform the development and implementation of related policies on water, climate, agriculture, forest, marine and regional planning. In this study, we present the development of an analytical framework which ensures that consistent approaches are used throughout the EU. It is framed by a broad set of key policy questions and structured around a conceptual framework that links human societies and their well-being with the environment. Next, this framework is tested through four thematic pilot studies, including stakeholders and experts working at different scales and governance levels, which contributed indicators to assess the state of ecosystem services. Indicators were scored according to different criteria and assorted per ecosystem type and ecosystem services using the common international classification of ecosystem services (CICES) as typology. We concluded that there is potential to develop a first EU wide ecosystem assessment on the basis of existing data if they are combined in a creative way. However, substantial data gaps remain to be filled before a fully integrated and complete ecosystem assessment can be carried out.

Cultural ecosystem services are defined by people's perception of the environment, which make them hard to quantify systematically. Methods to describe cultural benefits from ecosystems typically include resource-demanding survey techniques, which are not suitable to assess cultural ecosystem services for large areas. In this paper we explore a method to quantify cultural benefits through the enjoyment of natured-based tourism, by assessing the potential tourism attractiveness of species for each protected area in Africa using the IUCN's Red List of Threatened Species. We use the number of pictures of wildlife posted on a photo sharing website as a proxy for charisma, popularity, and ease of observation, as these factors combined are assumed to determine how attractive species are for the global wildlife tourist. Based on photo counts of 2473 African animals and plants, species that seem most attractive to nature-based tourism are the Lion, African Elephant and Leopard. Combining the photo counts with species range data, African protected areas with the highest potential to attract wildlife tourists based on attractive species occurrence were Samburu National Reserve in Kenya, Mukogodo Forest Reserve located just north of Mount Kenya, and Addo Elephant National Park in South-Africa. The proposed method requires only three data sources which are freely accessible and available online, which could make the proposed index tractable for large scale quantitative ecosystem service assessments. The index directly links species presence to the tourism potential of protected areas, making the connection between nature and human benefits explicit, but excludes other important contributing factors for tourism, such as accessibility and safety. This social media based index provides a broad understanding of those species that are popular globally; in many cases these are not the species of highest conservation concern.

Blue-green infrastructure (BGI) is becoming a more popular means of dealing with climate change and climate change-related events. However, as the concept of BGI is relatively new, many urban and rural planners are unfamiliar with the barriers they may face during the lifecycle of a BGI project. As a result, some have been hesitant to adopt BGI solutions. The literature has unveiled many of the barriers that inhibit the successful development of BGI, however, this information has yet to be presented in a manner that allows for easy identification. In this paper, a systematic literature review is undertaken to develop a framework which will enable BGI planners to assess the potential threats of a BGI project throughout the project’s lifecycle.

ABSTRACT. This paper investigates some economic consequences of creating a marine reserve on both fishing and ecotourism, when the range of controllability of fishing effort is limited and the impact of the reserve on ecosystem is considered. The issue is illustrated by the example of creating a no‐take zone in part of a region where fishing is managed through a limited entry license system, and which is inhabited by two interacting stocks: a stock of prey (fish) and a stock of predators (seals). While the former is targeted by commercial fishing, the latter is not subject to harvest but is a potential basis for a commercial non‐extractive activity (seal watching). Analysis is conducted with the help of a bioeconomic model combining the features of marine reserve modeling and of multispecies modeling. Following a description of the model, results of several simulation runs are presented. These show that creating a marine reserve has more complex economic implications than predicted in studies focused exclusively on one stock and/or commercial fisheries. More specifically, the model shows that the dynamics of the two interacting stocks reduces the benefits of the no‐take zone for the fishing industry, while it makes the creation of this zone provide an opportunity for the development of ecotourism. Due to this dynamics, the model suggests that the optimal size of the reserve is larger when ecotourism is taken into account along with fishing activities.

International audience

<i>Introduction</i>: This thematic collection, entitled “(En)Gendering Change in Small-scale Fisheries and Fishing Communities in a Globalized World”, emerged many years ago and finally materialized, thanks to the support of the Cluster “Women & Gender in Fisheries” of Too Big To Ignore, and the Working Group “Gendered Seas” of Ocean Past Platform (OPP) a European Union COST Action. In order to fulfill the idea, researchers from various disciplines and practitioners from different continents, working on women and gender issues in fisheries and coastal communities, were brought together at several occasions to discuss issues pertaining to gender in fisheries. The outcome of the networks has culminated into a series of articles presented in this publication, with additional papers to be published in the second thematic collection of Maritime Studies (MAST) in 2019.

Hopkins , T. S., D. Bailly, R. Elmgren, G. Glegg, A. Sandberg, and J. G. Støttrup. 2012. A systems approach framework for the transition to sustainable development: potential value based on coastal experiments. Ecology and Society 17(3): 39. https://doi.org/10.5751/ES-05266-170339

Marine and coastal activities are closely interrelated, and conflicts among different sectors can undermine management and conservation objectives. Governance systems for fisheries, power generation, irrigation, aquaculture, marine biodiversity conservation, and other coastal and maritime activities are typically organized to manage conflicts within sectors, rather than across them. Based on the discussions around eight case studies presented at a workshop held in Brest in June 2019, this paper explores institutional approaches to move beyond managing conflicts within a sector. We primarily focus on cases where the groups and sectors involved are heterogeneous in terms of: the jurisdiction they fall under; their objectives; and the way they value ecosystem services. The paper first presents a synthesis of frameworks for understanding and managing cross-sectoral governance conflicts, drawing from social and natural sciences. We highlight commonalities but also conceptual differences across disciplines to address these issues. We then propose a novel analytical framework which we used to evaluate the eight case studies. Based on the main lessons learned from case studies, we then discuss the feasibility and key determinants of stakeholder collaboration as well as compensation and incentive schemes. The discussion concludes with future research needs to support policy development and inform integrated institutional regimes that consider the diversity of stakeholder interests and the potential benefits of cross-sectoral coordination.

In 1997, Robert Costanza and his colleagues published a groundbreaking study [1] that estimated the monetary value of the contribution of the world's ecosystems to human wellbeing. The methods used were cited as preliminary and received considerable criticism [2], [3]. In two more recent peer-reviewed studies [4], [5], the authors update the original estimates of ecosystem service value and find: (1) that original per area ecosystem service values were underestimated and (2) using these revised per area values, the total global value of ecosystem services has declined. Just under ninety-five percent of the estimated loss in ecosystem service value comes from revisions by the authors in the value estimates of marine ecosystem services. These revisions include additional per area value estimates of coral reefs and coastal wetlands that are many times the value of estimates used in the original analysis. The reasons cited by Costanza et al. for the increases in revised value estimates are examined and rejected. The data are found to be insufficient for a rigorous estimate of the global value of marine ecosystems services.

This article provides a survey of the economic literature on investment behaviour and capacity adjustment in fisheries. An overview of the existing theoretical and the empirical work is provided, and areas that require more work are pointed out. The survey shows that while a large body of theoretical work has been developed on the issue of capital adjustment in fisheries, relatively less attention has been granted to the theory of investment, where this becomes a separate decision to the decision about capital levels; i.e., where capital is quasi-malleable. In addition, empirical studies have been fairly limited, and more work is still needed to analyse and further investigate these issues in practical situations. There is particularly a need for more empirical studies of investment behaviour and drivers of investment behaviour at the firm level based on adequate economic data.

Remerciements à l'éditeur pour son accord de diffusion. L'article original est aussi accessible sur le site de l'éditeur à l'adresse : http://www.halieutique.org/23201b.html

Fisheries statistics are known to be underestimated, since they are mainly based on information about commercial fisheries. However, various types of fishing activities exist and evaluating them is necessary for implementing effective management plans. This paper assesses the characteristics and catches of the French European sea bass recreational fishery along the Atlantic coasts, through the combination of large-scale telephone surveys and fishing diaries study. Our results demonstrated that half of the total catches (mainly small fish) were released at sea and that the mean length of a kept sea bass was 46.6 cm. We highlighted different patterns of fishing methods and type of gear used. Catches from boats were greater than from the shore, both in abundance and biomass, considering mean values per fishing trip as well as CPUE. Spearfishers caught the highest biomass of sea bass per fishing trip, but the fishing rod with lure was the most effective type of gear in terms of CPUE. Longlines had the highest CPUE value in abundance but not in biomass: they caught numerous but small sea bass. Handlines were less effective, catching few sea bass in both abundance and biomass. We estimated that the annual total recreational sea bass catches was 3,173 tonnes of which 2,345 tonnes were kept. Since the annual commercial catches landings were evaluated at 5,160 tonnes, recreational landings represent 30% of the total fishing catches on the Atlantic coasts of France. Using fishers' self-reports was a valuable way to obtain new information on datapoor fisheries. Our results underline the importance of evaluating recreational fishing as a part of the total amount of fisheries catches. More studies are critically needed to assess overall fish resources caught in order to develop effective fishery management tools.

International audience

This paper evaluates the degree of integration between the world market and the major European marketplaces of frozen and canned tuna through both vertical and horizontal price relationships. Spatial linkages are investigated horizontally in order to estimate the connection between the European market and the world-wide market on the primary stage of the value chain. One of the key results is the high level of market integration at the ex-vessel stage, and the price leadership of yellowfin tuna over skipjack tuna. The same approach is applied at the ex-factory level. Basically, the European market for final goods appears to be segmented between the Northern countries consuming low-priced canned skipjack tuna imported from Asia (mainly Thailand) and the Southern countries (Italy, Spain) processing and importing yellowfin-based products sold at higher prices. France appears to be an intermediate market where both products are consumed. The former market is found to be well integrated to the world market and can be considered to be competitive, but there is a suspicion of market power being exercised on the latter. Price relationships are therefore tested vertically between the price of frozen tuna paid by the canneries and the price of canned fish in both Italy and France. The two species show an opposite pattern in prices transmission along the value chain: price changes along the chain are far better transmitted for the "global" skipjack tuna than for the more "European" yellowfin tuna. The results are discussed, along with their implications for the fishing industry.

Thirty French fleets fishing primarily in the Bay of Biscay were defined based on techno-economic input criteria: i) 18 fishing gear or gear combinations ii) the location of fishing grounds visited during a year (<12 nautical miles from coast, beyond 12 nm or both) and iii) total vessel length (<20 m for trawlers and other gears <24 m). The fleets were then characterised in terms of horse power, economic dependence on a list of nine dominant commercial species (sole, Nephrops, sea bass, hake, monkfish, anchovy, cuttlefish, sardine and squid) and their contribution to the landings of these species from the Bay of Biscay. Most fleets derived the majority of their income from one or two among the nine species. Species dependencies changed little during the study period, except for those vessels targeting anchovy before the fishery restrictions starting in 2005. Fish community impacts were compared based on fleet landings' profiles. Twelve landings profiles were determined using hierarchical cluster analysis. Fleets using similar gears had the same landings' profiles and therefore exercised similar pressures on the ecosystem, though not always in the same areas. The depletion of anchovy and the closure of the fishery lead to a change in landings profile for offshore pelagic trawlers from anchovy dominance to one with a larger proportion of albacore and sea bass. During the study period, the overall vessel number decreased from 2163 to 1845. Few vessels changed fleets, but if they did, they primarily started to fish closer to the coast, which might be a result of increasing fuel prices.

In most fisheries worldwide, crew are paid through different shared remuneration systems rather than a fixed wage. In shared remuneration systems, wages can significantly increase when the economic performance of vessels improve, and consequently provide incentives to workers. However, in recent years, mainly due to high overexploitation levels that lead to reduced productivity and consequently lower salaries shared remuneration systems have lost their attractiveness. Different remuneration systems applied in fisheries world-wide are described and analyzed comparatively. Results explain how crew wages and rent distribution outcomes vary between the different remuneration systems depending on the state of exploitation of the resource.

Most fisheries worldwide remunerate their crew with a share system, where crew receive a part of the revenues or a part of the revenues less costs, rather than a fixed wage. Although labor is one of the main costs in fisheries and the share remuneration system has a strong influence on firm behavior and its economic performance, little attention has been paid it. In a share remuneration system, crew salaries can significantly increase when the economic performance of a vessel improves. This allows the crew to capture part of the fisheries rent. Bioeconomic analyses are performed for the Bay of Biscay nephrops fishery on main management targets. Results confirm the importance of considering a share system compared to a fixed remuneration system in vessel owner (capital) and crew (labor) rent distribution and fishing decisions.

Over recent years, fisheries managers have been going through a paradigm shift to prioritize ecosystem-based management. With this comes an increasing need to better understand the impacts of fisheries management decisions on the social well-being and sustainability of fishing communities. This article summarizes research aimed at using secondary data to develop socioeconomic and fisheries involvement indices to measure objective fishing community well-being in Alaska. Data from more than 300 communities in Alaska were used to create a database of socioeconomic and fisheries involvement indices of objective well-being and adaptability for Alaska communities dependent on marine resources. Each index was developed using a principal components factor analysis to assess the relative position of each community compared to all other communities in Alaska. We find that creating performance measures, such as the indices presented here, provides a useful way to track the status of socioeconomic conditions and fisheries involvement by communities over time.

Ecosystem services assessments are increasingly being used to inform marine policy and planning. These assessments involve significant time, effort, and expertise. It is important at the outset to determine which of many ecosystem services should be quantified and which measures of ecological output, economic impact, or value should be assessed. Furthermore, the literature shows that in practice such assessments are unevenly applied and rarely used effectively in decision-making processes. We develop a structured decision-making approach, called a triage, to assess what types of ecosystem services should be assessed to improve the uptake and usefulness of such information in marine planning. Two case studies, in France and the United Kingdom, provide examples of the application of the triage approach.

The ever-accelerating process of introduction and establishment of invasive alien species (IAS) in marine waters requires engaging different actors in the management and planning. To address this challenge, stakeholders need an integrated approach for defining actions of control and management within an ecosystem-based framework: to seek and enhance coordination, collaboration and trust among all stakeholders affected by changes in linked marine social - ecological systems. This study explores the complexities and opportunities in managing economically valuable IAS, demonstrating the need for tailored management strategies that consider key ecological details needed for successful control such as timing of removals and key economic considerations such as appropriate incentive mechanisms and time horizons in favor of long-term conservation goals. We propose a set of actions that can serve as a roadmap for effective IAS control and management, considering their dual role as nuisances and valuable resources. These actions pertain to local, regional and international levels, encouraging meaningful stakeholder engagement through co-management structures that can foster the development of robust management plans, enabling better IAS control. The outcome holds potential for positive contributions to the blue economy— sustainable use of marine resources, including fisheries, tourism, and renewable energy— and for meeting sustainability objectives.