contribute more significantly to the overall aquaculture sector’s growth, offering
alternative or supplementary solutions for meeting food security challenges and
provide a source of income generation, to mention only a few of the possible
benefits not always fully realised.
Globally, it has been well recognized that there is an increased need to conserve
ocean ecosystems and to use ocean space as efficiently as possible, thus requiring
planning for multiple uses of compatible activities, and the development of
strategies to promote, enhance, and optimize the multiple uses in order to protect
ocean ecosystems and conserve ocean space (Buck et al. 2004; Mee 2006). That
said, all of these activities planned in the offshore realm require strong policy
backing with effective governance arrangements and clear multi-use management
goals in place. Traditionally, the notion of the sea as an endless source of resources
has long dominated marine resource management, especially in the fisheries sector
where weak governance is recognised to have contributed to unsustainable
exploitation of fishery resources. Historically, an absence of institutions governing
the sea was highlighted as early as 1968 by Hardin through his seminal article ‘the
tragedy of the commons’. Furthermore, in the recent efforts in tailoring contemporary institutional structures that govern and manage marine ecosystems, a lack of
understanding about the different perceptions and value systems of marine resource
users and how these influence human behaviour has surfaced. However, such
socio-political considerations over the whole range of stakeholders and their type of
involvement in the establishment and operation of multi-use offshore systems has
received little attention, thus this chapter is timely in highlighting the role of
governance in multi-use offshore aquaculture development.
In the late 1970s, the introduction of the UNCLOS (United Nations Convention
on the Law of the Sea) led to successive efforts on governing the offshore commons
in a more streamlined approach. Despite not all countries officially ratifying the
UNCLOS to date, most have endorsed the concept of the rights and duties pertaining to Exclusive Economic Zone definitions (Buck et al. 2004). Nonetheless,
managing the complexities surrounding marine governance issues including equitable access to offshore marine resources requires policies that take account of the
structures and principles relevant to decision-making. This chapter provides a broad
overview of the role good governance can play in supporting development of the
offshore aquaculture sector in an increasingly contested marine environment where
multiple use demands robust governance systems.
7.2 Defining Governance, Management and Policy
Managing aquaculture, like much of marine resources management, is often dealt
with independently to other marine sectors competing for use of similar areas, for
example, fisheries and offshore renewable energy sectors (Stead 2005, 2015). Good
governance can help integrate consideration of impacts from decisions made about
7 Governance and Offshore Aquaculture in Multi-resource …
151
alternative or supplementary solutions for meeting food security challenges and
provide a source of income generation, to mention only a few of the possible
benefits not always fully realised.
Globally, it has been well recognized that there is an increased need to conserve
ocean ecosystems and to use ocean space as efficiently as possible, thus requiring
planning for multiple uses of compatible activities, and the development of
strategies to promote, enhance, and optimize the multiple uses in order to protect
ocean ecosystems and conserve ocean space (Buck et al. 2004; Mee 2006). That
said, all of these activities planned in the offshore realm require strong policy
backing with effective governance arrangements and clear multi-use management
goals in place. Traditionally, the notion of the sea as an endless source of resources
has long dominated marine resource management, especially in the fisheries sector
where weak governance is recognised to have contributed to unsustainable
exploitation of fishery resources. Historically, an absence of institutions governing
the sea was highlighted as early as 1968 by Hardin through his seminal article ‘the
tragedy of the commons’. Furthermore, in the recent efforts in tailoring contemporary institutional structures that govern and manage marine ecosystems, a lack of
understanding about the different perceptions and value systems of marine resource
users and how these influence human behaviour has surfaced. However, such
socio-political considerations over the whole range of stakeholders and their type of
involvement in the establishment and operation of multi-use offshore systems has
received little attention, thus this chapter is timely in highlighting the role of
governance in multi-use offshore aquaculture development.
In the late 1970s, the introduction of the UNCLOS (United Nations Convention
on the Law of the Sea) led to successive efforts on governing the offshore commons
in a more streamlined approach. Despite not all countries officially ratifying the
UNCLOS to date, most have endorsed the concept of the rights and duties pertaining to Exclusive Economic Zone definitions (Buck et al. 2004). Nonetheless,
managing the complexities surrounding marine governance issues including equitable access to offshore marine resources requires policies that take account of the
structures and principles relevant to decision-making. This chapter provides a broad
overview of the role good governance can play in supporting development of the
offshore aquaculture sector in an increasingly contested marine environment where
multiple use demands robust governance systems.
7.2 Defining Governance, Management and Policy
Managing aquaculture, like much of marine resources management, is often dealt
with independently to other marine sectors competing for use of similar areas, for
example, fisheries and offshore renewable energy sectors (Stead 2005, 2015). Good
governance can help integrate consideration of impacts from decisions made about
7 Governance and Offshore Aquaculture in Multi-resource …
151