Towards Ecosystem-based Management of Shellfish Aquaculture in British Columbia, Canada PDF Download

Author: Melanie Paula Mamoser
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Languages : en
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Book Description
With declining wild fisheries and increasing seafood demand from a growing population, attention has turned to aquaculture in general, and shellfish aquaculture in particular, to meet this demand. Aquaculture has grown dramatically in the last twenty years through intensification of operations and the expansion of the industry into new areas. This growth has been associated with environmental degradation and social conflict leading some to question its sustainability. However, those studying the problem point to significant opportunities for sustainable forms of aquaculture by focusing on the cultivation of species such as shellfish and the adoption of ecosystem-based management (EBM). Shellfish aquaculture has a long history in British Columbia (B.C.), Canada with an abundance of coastline and suitable water conditions. There is significant development potential for shellfish aquaculture in B.C., which creates an opportunity to ensure this development occurs in an ecologically sound way through the use of governance approaches like ecosystem-based management. Transitioning from conventional approaches to resource management to an ecosystem-based approach presents several challenges particularly for the management of one sector. This study highlights how an understanding of the industry and the existing governance context can inform the implementation of EBM. The specific research objectives include: (1) to understand the governance system for shellfish aquaculture in B.C.; (2) to understand the shellfish aquaculture industry within the context of EBM; and (3) to explore EBM as an approach to governance in the shellfish aquaculture industry in B.C. The main method of inquiry is a questionnaire survey (October 2006 to February 2008) of the shellfish aquaculture industry. Supporting methods include an analysis of industry data, an in-depth analysis of government documents, policies and regulations, and targeted interviews with federal and provincial government regulators. The empirical knowledge gained through the main research instrument was combined with the contextual knowledge gained through the supporting methods to achieve a more holistic understanding of the case study. The results show that the governance setting for the shellfish aquaculture industry is multi-lateral and the lack of comprehensive and targeted legal instruments, and the ill-use of marine spatial planning and conflicts with other coastal users have together contributed to an inefficient and costly site application process. EBM has the potential to address some of these challenges with the current governance process by making some decisions on an ecosystem-scale as opposed to an application-by-application basis, such as assessing the presence of fish habitat and consulting with stakeholders. The results of the survey of the shellfish aquaculture industry show that the industry is geographically diverse, and understands and values the connection between their business and the large ecosystem. This suggests that the industry may be supportive of EBM. However, the industry faces many economic challenges that may influence their capacity to participate, as such regulators should look towards the use of economic incentives to achieve policy objectives ...