Fishery Management – Practical Approaches to Ecosystem-Based Management and the Role of Science

Moderators: Gunnar Knapp and Tom Gemmell
Emails: afgpk@uaa.alaska.edu and tomgemmellmca@ak.net

Date: Monday, September 12, 2005
Time: 1:20 pm to 5:40 pm
Location: Discovery Theatre

The 2004 US Commission on Ocean Policy (USCOP) report has heightened interest in ocean policy and governance, and the 109th Congress is poised to reauthorize the Magnuson-Stevens Act, which governs fisheries in the U.S. Exclusive Economic Zone. Specifically, issues have been raised concerning fishery governance, the role of science in management decisions, and ecosystem based management. Some organizations have proposed separating the Science and Statistical Committee (SSC) from the Regional Fisheries Management Council and creating separate organizations, while others have proposed strengthening the role of the SSC in setting quotas. There is considerable discussion about ecosystem based management and what that means; the critical issue is how fishery managers can make practical application of this concept in daily management. This symposium will explore these issues with an emphasis on practical applications in management of fisheries in the U.S. EEZ; and incremental improvement of the governance systems. Discussions from this symposium will inform decision making by the 109th Congress, the National Marine Fisheries Service, and the Regional Fishery Management Councils.

Link to list of presentations in this symposium

Sponsors:

Institute of Social and Economic Research, University of Alaska Anchorage