Linking Management and Markets: The Northwest Atlantic Sea Herring Industry and the Case for Regional Quotas

This review and characterization of the U.S. Atlantic sea herring fishery and industry analyzes opportunities for and constraints to developing the herring resource more fully. Chapter 1 describes the herring resource, the existing fishery, and reviews current research into the international transboundary migrations of the Atlantic sea herring. Chapters 2 and 3 describe the development of the herring fishery management plan in the context of the global herring market and the management complications that arise from the transboundary migrations of the stocks. Examples of successful linkages between fisheries management and market development are described in Chapter 4 to illustrate the importance of incorporating these two elements into fisheries management plans. These management systems, largely drawn from other countries which encourage more local control and responsibility for sustaining fisheries resources, are summarized to illustrate options for inclusion in the draft U.S. Atlantic herring management plan. A proposal and justification for regional and/or community -based allocations of herring is presented in Chapter 5. This proposal is grounded in the language of the draft Atlantic sea herring management plan currently under development, and draws on examples of similar management schemes which have proved successful in linking management and marketing of fisheries resources. In order to develop a current perspective on the U.S. herring industry, a representative cross-section of industry participants was interviewed for their opinions on opportunities and constraints to further utilization of the Atlantic herring resource. Summary results of the interviews are included in relevant chapters of the paper