SUSTAINABLE FISHERIES: A GOAL FOR ALL USERS OF THE GALAPAGOS MARINE RESERVE
The decision by the Ecuadorian government on 30 May to lift the ban on the sea cucumber fishery in response to the socio-economic needs of the local fishing sector reflects the need for authorities and resource users to reconsider management strategies and develop a sustainable fishery, according to the Charles Darwin Foundation (CDF).
"The sea cucumber population in the Galapagos has declined dramatically over the last 6 years as a result of agreeing to fishing quotas that are not correlated with the results of biological studies," said Graham Watkins, executive director of the Charles Darwin Foundation (CDF) following the meeting of the
Inter-institutional Management Authority (IMA) for the Galapagos Marine Reserve in San Cristobal Island.
CDF presented the results of population studies to the IMA, which indicate the sea cucumber population has shown no signs of recovery in the wake of what appears to be a collapse following the 2003 harvest. CDF accepts the need to incorporate socio-economic issues into decision making but counseled the
authorities to take actions to mitigate the impact of this year's harvest on future possible harvests. Specifically, the CDF suggested that potential spawning areas around Fernandina should not be harvested, individual transferable quotas should be used, and monitoring should be based on fresh sea cucumbers and not salted or dried sea cucumbers. (Once processed, the size of the live cucumber is difficult to calculate accurately). This monitoring method also allows for the return of too-small cucumbers to the ocean, and prevents the inclusion of sea cucumbers caught outside the season. These recommendations were not accepted by the IMA who opened the fishery with the same conditions as 2004 except that the total quota was reduced to 3 million from 4 million and that a total unconditional ban was put in place for 2006.
"The most important result of the meeting was that the IMA ordered the Participatory Management Board (PMB) to undertake an evaluation to modify fisheries management systems and present the final report to the IMA before December 2005," said Watkins.
The IMA also requested the fishing cooperatives to begin a process to reduce the number of fishermen in Galapagos, whose numbers have grown from 682 in 2000 to 997 in 2004. The National Institute of Galapagos (INGALA) was also asked to develop an implementation plan to diversify fisheries and find alternative employment for fishermen in Galapagos.
"Marine resources have decreased because of over harvest and illegal harvest caused by excessive fishing effort focused in few fisheries - grouper, sea cucumber and lobster - and the absence of a culture of sustainability," said Watkins. "Conflict management is urgently needed in the short-term to strengthen the participatory and state management systems in Galapagos, as is the will of resource users and stakeholders to seek real solutions to management issues."
Watkins linked the increasing over harvest of marine resources and illegal harvests in Galapagos to the rapid growth in population in the islands, driven by international markets for tourism and marine products such as sea cucumbers. "The arrival of human immigrants increases pressures relating to work
opportunities and access to resources and this has increased local conflict," said Watkins. "In many developing nations, these fisheries have tended toward commercial extinction as a result of the complex interaction between global markets, weak management institutions, the inability to restrict fishing effort and the biology of the species being harvested."
For more information contact:
Galapagos Local/National Press: Ana Maria Loose E-mail amloose@fcdarwin.org.ec
International: Sharon Ryan E-mail sryan@fcdarwin.org.ec
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