115
7 Ecosystem Health in the Context of Fisheries and Aquaculture…
Table 7.1
Challenges related to fi sheries and coastal development affecting ecosystem health
Characteristics
System-to-be-governed
Governing system
Governing interactions
Diversity
New economic opportunities like
tourism, transportation, commerce,
recreation, etc. conducive to coastal
development; increasing number of
ethnic communities due to coastal
migration; increasing use of fi shing
gear types; new entrants into the
fi shery
Increasing actors in fi sheries and coastal areas
requiring a higher number – or broader
scope – of responsible government
agencies; new rules and regulations
established to address the multiple
demands and interests
Greater level, and variation in types, of
interactions between government
agencies and fi sheries-coastal actors
required to manage growth and to
prevent negative consequences for
fi sheries resources and the coastal
ecosystem
Complexity
Fishers of different gear types, coastal
communities of different ethnic
groups and multiple coastal
stakeholders relying on the sharing
of limited resources and space
Various governing agencies with different
responsibilities requiring increasing
coordination to achieve their individual
mandates
Not all interactions are mutually supportive.
For instance, two-way information
sharing between stakeholders can
generate trust, while one-way information fl ow can be seen as exploitative
Dynamics
User con fl icts and social tension arising
from resource and space competition – gear con fl ict may surge
because risks associated to speci fi c
gears; cultural differences leading to
an intensi fi cation of effort in fi shing
and coastal development and
deterioration of social capital
Mandates and goals of the various agencies
may not be compatible causing confusion
and uncertainty among stakeholders
Interactions can result in positive outcomes
such as compliance and partnership
building, or negative outcomes such as
con fl ict and disagreement among
stakeholders
Scale
Impacts of fi shing and coastal
development are not contained
within the areas where the activities
take place; they also do not happen
immediately but can be accumulated
over time. Other general processes
may deeply affect coastal areas
(climate change)
Most governing agencies are restricted in
their spatial jurisdiction, having thus
dif fi culty coping with the different
magnitude of the impacts and the
consequences of phenomena like climate
change, sea level rise and tsunamis
Interactions are dif fi cult to coordinate when
space is widened and when time
sensitivity may be an issue, as in the
case of adaptive management where
learning and feedback are required.
Also, contradictory interests, like those
related to climatic change between
powerful countries, may pose enormous
challenges to reach agreements
7 Ecosystem Health in the Context of Fisheries and Aquaculture…
Table 7.1
Challenges related to fi sheries and coastal development affecting ecosystem health
Characteristics
System-to-be-governed
Governing system
Governing interactions
Diversity
New economic opportunities like
tourism, transportation, commerce,
recreation, etc. conducive to coastal
development; increasing number of
ethnic communities due to coastal
migration; increasing use of fi shing
gear types; new entrants into the
fi shery
Increasing actors in fi sheries and coastal areas
requiring a higher number – or broader
scope – of responsible government
agencies; new rules and regulations
established to address the multiple
demands and interests
Greater level, and variation in types, of
interactions between government
agencies and fi sheries-coastal actors
required to manage growth and to
prevent negative consequences for
fi sheries resources and the coastal
ecosystem
Complexity
Fishers of different gear types, coastal
communities of different ethnic
groups and multiple coastal
stakeholders relying on the sharing
of limited resources and space
Various governing agencies with different
responsibilities requiring increasing
coordination to achieve their individual
mandates
Not all interactions are mutually supportive.
For instance, two-way information
sharing between stakeholders can
generate trust, while one-way information fl ow can be seen as exploitative
Dynamics
User con fl icts and social tension arising
from resource and space competition – gear con fl ict may surge
because risks associated to speci fi c
gears; cultural differences leading to
an intensi fi cation of effort in fi shing
and coastal development and
deterioration of social capital
Mandates and goals of the various agencies
may not be compatible causing confusion
and uncertainty among stakeholders
Interactions can result in positive outcomes
such as compliance and partnership
building, or negative outcomes such as
con fl ict and disagreement among
stakeholders
Scale
Impacts of fi shing and coastal
development are not contained
within the areas where the activities
take place; they also do not happen
immediately but can be accumulated
over time. Other general processes
may deeply affect coastal areas
(climate change)
Most governing agencies are restricted in
their spatial jurisdiction, having thus
dif fi culty coping with the different
magnitude of the impacts and the
consequences of phenomena like climate
change, sea level rise and tsunamis
Interactions are dif fi cult to coordinate when
space is widened and when time
sensitivity may be an issue, as in the
case of adaptive management where
learning and feedback are required.
Also, contradictory interests, like those
related to climatic change between
powerful countries, may pose enormous
challenges to reach agreements