Artisanal fishing opportunities
This goal measures whether people who need to fish on a small, local scale have the opportunity to do so.
This information is meant to help guide the process of developing the Gulf of California OHI!
This goal is included in the global OHI, but other regional assessments have cut or modified this goal to better meet their objectives for ocean health. For example, in a Canadian OHI assessment, the perspective of Aboriginal communities, which has been absent from assessments at the global scale due to lack of information, was represented by redefining the artisanal fishing opportunities goal as the Aboriginal opportunity goal. The model will almost certainly be modified for the Gulf of California assessment. For example, need is a component of the global analysis, but may not be relevant in a regional assessment.
Overview
Artisanal fishing, often also called small-scale fishing, provides a critical source of food, nutrition, poverty alleviation and livelihood opportunities for many people around the world, especially in developing nations. Small-scale fishing is an important component of cultural identity and heritage.
Half the world’s fish harvest is captured by artisanal fishing families.
This goal measures how easy or hard it is for fishers to access ocean resources when they need them and the sustainability of harvest of stocks used by artisanal fishers. The need for artisanal fishing is most directly tied to the percent of population below the poverty line. Access, or ability to meet this need, are institutional permits or encouragements for small fisheries. Sustainability of artisanal fisheries refers to the sustainability of fishing methods and/or the health of targeted species. Sustainable gears are traditional hook and line, as opposed to unsustainable practices such as dynamite and gill net fishing.
A high score indicates that the demand for artisanal fishing is being met using lawful and sustainable methods, or alternatively, there is little economic need for artisanal fishing. A low score indicates that regions are not achieving or allowing sustainable artisanal fishing opportunities to be realized.
While small-scale fishing provides benefits and opportunities for local communities, limited or ineffective regulation and enforcement can signficantly impact the ability to pursue it.
Comparison of large scale and small scale fisheries
Practical Guidance
Ideally, this goal will include a measure of of how easy or hard it is for residents to access ocean resources when they need them. Measures of access include institutional and/or government regulations that provide people with access to marine waters through open coastlines and docks, readily available permitting for fish harvest, and programs that foster artisanal fishing opportunities. Another measure of access is that fish are actually available, which can be estimated by assessing the health of targeted species (see Fisheries subgoal) or the general sustainability of fishing practices. Sustainable gears are traditional hook and line, as opposed to unsustainable practices such as dynamite and gill net fishing.
In the global analysis, the need for artisanal fishing is most directly tied to the percent of population below the poverty line.
NOTE: The benefits of Artisanal Fishing can be difficult to parse from other goals. For example, tonnage of artisanally-caught fish will typically be included in the Food Provision goal. Another example is that in the Baltic Sea region, Artisanal Opportunities is very closely connected to Tourism and Recreation since there are a lot of locals and tourists using the shared sea for enjoyment. It will be necessary to determine how to apportion the data.
The reference point will depend on the data and model. In most cases, the availability of better local data will allow for improvements to the Global OHI assessment model (see table below).
LEARN MORE
Explore the full description of the data and model used in the GLOBAL MODEL. Or, take a look at REGIONAL APPROACHES to learn how other OHI+ assessments have modified this goal to address differences in data availability or priorities.