Rethinking fisheries management as a combined response to changing climate, habitat & fishing pressure

Colin Creighton, Chair, Climate Change Adaptation – Marine Biodiversity & Fisheries, FRDC

Under classic fisheries management theory fisheries typically move from “nascent” to “developed” and then to a “sustainably developed” phase with maximum sustainable yield as the goal of management.  This classic theory looks principally at fishing pressure. A more recent trend in fisheries management is towards “economically sustainable yield” or maximum economic yield.  In tracking progress towards managed sustainability the most commonly used metric is a measure of catch per unit effort [CPUE].  Fisheries managers regard stable CPUE as evidence of “sustainable” fishing. However, for many coastal / nearshore target species, and indeed about 75% of Australia’s commercial catch with its estuary dependent lifecycle, fishing effort and catch may not be the major stressor.  Loss of habitat, covering both physical habitat loss and declining water quality can be the major stressor on total population size.  The other major influence that must be taken into account is Australia’s variable and changing climate. This presentation draws heavily on the findings of multiple completed research projects undertaken as part of the FRDC – DCCEE Climate Change Adaptation Initiative and speculates on how we might need to reform our fisheries management systems.  The presentation concludes with a suite of criteria for smarter fisheries management that by being centred on stock productivity can incorporate the issues of resource allocation, habitat condition and climate variability / change.