692
estuarine resources, and the second regards to the continuum of estuarine production for the recovery of fish stocks. These issues lead to urgent points, such as accurate records of landing data for fishery assessments in estuaries, rapid management
measures for the collapsed resources, and habitat loss control. Co-management has
been pointed as the best available option for guarantee information on landed living
resources along estuaries and adjacent coasts. This is particularly important in systems, where the availability of fish resources changes dramatically according to the
seasonal fluctuation of the estuarine ecocline or due to some large human
intervention.
Short-term fishery management options need to be performed in every wetland.
It includes increasing numbers of no-take zones, closed periods for the capture of
fish resources, the consolidation of better fishery technologies and rules to avoid
precocious capture of non-rentable bycatch and/or vulnerable species. It is also
important to guarantee that systems maintain their environmental importance to
species that depend upon estuarine habitats to complete their life cycles or for the
living of their food resources. Organization of fish markets, empowerment of traditional activities and human resources, and better tourism practices are among the
other options to earn money and diminish the direct exploitation of estuarine living
resources. All these measures need to take into account the social and cultural characteristics of the traditional communities and their fisheries through the implementation of educational and socioenvironmental assessments.
Estuaries along the Brazilian coast are intensively suffering pressures besides
overexploitation of fish resources. It includes accelerated changes in water flow and
quality, and modifications for human purposes. The most pronounced impacts are
expanded hectares of sugarcane plantation around estuaries (e.g. Goiana Estuary),
uncontrolled agriculture and aquaculture practices, intensive capture of bycatch
(e.g. Laguna Estuarine System), regulation of river flow by hydroelectric power
plants and dredging leading to marine water intrusion and mischaracterization of
the estuarine ecocline (e.g. São Francisco Estuary), and uncontrolled mass tourism
(e.g. Parnaíba Delta). For this reason, coastal wetlands urges managerial options for
extractive reserves (i.e. Acaú-Goiana) whose plans are not yet drawn; sustainable
use practices within or outside formal MPAs for intense estuarine fisheries (i.e.
Laguna); and monitoring, control and surveillance of estuarine regions where management plans are already available (i.e. MPAs Delta do Parnaíba, Piaçabuçú,
Litoral Norte and Marituba do Peixe). All these steps must include the participation
of stakeholders aiming at understanding local needs and generation of data for the
formulation of consistent models.
Gathering data for estuarine fisheries management is not a new demand for neither public nor private sectors of the economy. However, building a relevant data
collection for the coupling of economic and conservation purposes might be a new
challenge to be faced by scientist, policy makers and the local communities together.
The characteristics of the data collection and processing actions will need to be in
agreement with the assets and limitations of each environment.
The choice of model estuaries to exemplify the type of data and information
needed made in this chapter conveys two main messages: one that the estuaries on
M. Barletta et al.
estuarine resources, and the second regards to the continuum of estuarine production for the recovery of fish stocks. These issues lead to urgent points, such as accurate records of landing data for fishery assessments in estuaries, rapid management
measures for the collapsed resources, and habitat loss control. Co-management has
been pointed as the best available option for guarantee information on landed living
resources along estuaries and adjacent coasts. This is particularly important in systems, where the availability of fish resources changes dramatically according to the
seasonal fluctuation of the estuarine ecocline or due to some large human
intervention.
Short-term fishery management options need to be performed in every wetland.
It includes increasing numbers of no-take zones, closed periods for the capture of
fish resources, the consolidation of better fishery technologies and rules to avoid
precocious capture of non-rentable bycatch and/or vulnerable species. It is also
important to guarantee that systems maintain their environmental importance to
species that depend upon estuarine habitats to complete their life cycles or for the
living of their food resources. Organization of fish markets, empowerment of traditional activities and human resources, and better tourism practices are among the
other options to earn money and diminish the direct exploitation of estuarine living
resources. All these measures need to take into account the social and cultural characteristics of the traditional communities and their fisheries through the implementation of educational and socioenvironmental assessments.
Estuaries along the Brazilian coast are intensively suffering pressures besides
overexploitation of fish resources. It includes accelerated changes in water flow and
quality, and modifications for human purposes. The most pronounced impacts are
expanded hectares of sugarcane plantation around estuaries (e.g. Goiana Estuary),
uncontrolled agriculture and aquaculture practices, intensive capture of bycatch
(e.g. Laguna Estuarine System), regulation of river flow by hydroelectric power
plants and dredging leading to marine water intrusion and mischaracterization of
the estuarine ecocline (e.g. São Francisco Estuary), and uncontrolled mass tourism
(e.g. Parnaíba Delta). For this reason, coastal wetlands urges managerial options for
extractive reserves (i.e. Acaú-Goiana) whose plans are not yet drawn; sustainable
use practices within or outside formal MPAs for intense estuarine fisheries (i.e.
Laguna); and monitoring, control and surveillance of estuarine regions where management plans are already available (i.e. MPAs Delta do Parnaíba, Piaçabuçú,
Litoral Norte and Marituba do Peixe). All these steps must include the participation
of stakeholders aiming at understanding local needs and generation of data for the
formulation of consistent models.
Gathering data for estuarine fisheries management is not a new demand for neither public nor private sectors of the economy. However, building a relevant data
collection for the coupling of economic and conservation purposes might be a new
challenge to be faced by scientist, policy makers and the local communities together.
The characteristics of the data collection and processing actions will need to be in
agreement with the assets and limitations of each environment.
The choice of model estuaries to exemplify the type of data and information
needed made in this chapter conveys two main messages: one that the estuaries on
M. Barletta et al.