International Commercial Fishing Management Regime Safety Study: Review of International Case Studies

Suggested Bibliographic Reference: Challenging New Frontiers in the Global Seafood Sector: Proceedings of the Eighteenth Biennial Conference of the International Institute of Fisheries Economics and Trade, July 11-15, 2016. Compiled by Stefani J. Evers and Ann L. Shriver. International Institute of Fisheries Economics and Trade (IIFET), Corvallis, 2016.Proceedings of the Eighteenth Biennial Conference of the International Institute of Fisheries Economics and Trade, held July 11-15, 2016 at Aberdeen Exhibition and Conference Center (AECC), Aberdeen, Scotland, UK.Background: Many studies have suggested that fisheries management may affect fishing safety. However, there has been relatively little systematic analysis of how fisheries management affects safety or the extent to which changes in management can make fishing safer or less safe.\ud Methods: The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations and the US National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health cooperated on an international effort to document the relationship between fisheries management and fishing safety to provide practical guidelines for fisheries managers and safety professionals. Fourteen case studies were collected from around the world and reviewed for evidence to four hypotheses of how fisheries management policies could affect safety. \ud Results: Each case study provided evidence supporting at least one of the hypotheses. The review of the case studies resulted in a conceptual framework and some terminology about the relationship between fisheries management and fishing safety. Preliminary recommendations for fisheries managers and safety professionals about how they can help make commercial fishing safer were developed based on this review. The presentation will also provide suggestions for important areas for future research. This synthesis was used as a basis for an FAO Expert Consultation\ud Conclusions: Fishery management is a complex challenge. Managers must attempt to balance multiple objectives, under significant uncertainty, with limited resources. We recommend that managers take practical steps and acknowledge the relationships we have outlined in this document and then take steps which may help to save lives and reduce injuries to fishermen