A changing fishery system: perspectives from crew in the Southern Cape’s handline fishery

ABSTRACT

Fishers operating on smaller scales are vulnerable to stressors at multiple temporal and spatial scales that drive change in marine social-ecological systems (SES). Apart from natural variability, the effects of anthropogenic change and developmental challenges add to complexity and uncertainty. Fishers need to proactively implement response strategies to achieve sustainable livelihoods and well-being. To do so, the impact and interplay of drivers of change within SES need to be better understood. Participant-led research was conducted with the crew who operate in the small-scale linefishery of the Southern Cape (South Africa) between 2014 and 2015. Fishers’ perspectives were recorded using asurvey with 59 households. Specifically, the research seeks to establish what knowledge the crew of the linefishery hold of the drivers of change in their area of operation. The results offer an analysis focusing on the stressors in the natural system, social and economic (sub-)systems, policy and regulatory issues and insights into the fishers’ attitude towards change and adaptation options. The research, complimenting previous research, contributes to the understanding of this SES by providing insights into this linefishery which needs to be accounted for when considering future responses to change.

KEYWORDS:

• Fisheries
• climate change
• socio-ecological systems
• sustainability
• society-nature relations

Acknowledgments

Our sincere thanks go to all research participants for offering up their time to participate in this project, to Dr James Howard for the collection of the GULLS data, Lee-Anne Gammage for transcribing the interviews, and the Marine Ecology and Fisheries research group for editorial inputs.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Notes

1. The EAF approach to fisheries management ‘strives to balance diverse societal objectives, by taking account of the knowledge and uncertainties of biotic, abiotic and human components of ecosystems and their interactions and applying an integrated approach to fisheries within ecologically meaningful boundaries’ (FAO, 2003, p. 14). The successful implementation and adaptation of an EAF requires that the scope of fisheries management is significantly broadened. To establish the required knowledge, it is necessary to develop an understanding of a range of areas which include the impact of fisheries on the ecosystem, to social, economic and governance aspects (Dorner et al., 2014).

2. The South African line fishery is a boat-based, multi-user, multi-area and multi-species fishery that conducts mostly day trips ranging from 6–8 h. The Southern Cape line fishery operates in the inshore area of the Agulhas Bank and primarily targets silver kob (Argyrosomus inodorus) (Blamey et al., 2015; Griffiths, 2000). Rights allocation in this sector is carried out by the Department of Forestry and fisheries (DAFF) in accordance with a total applied effort, which limits the amount of fishing boats (Department of Environmental Affairs & Tourism [DEAT], 2005; Sowman et al., 2014).

3. Results of preliminary analysis fed back by L. Gammage within the context of her PhD research.

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by the South African Department of Science and Technology and the National Research Foundation through a DST/RISA Doctoral Innovation Scholarship [101913] and the South African Research Chair in Marine Ecology and Fisheries [65238]  as well as by the University of Cape Town [KW Johnston Bequest & Twamley Postgraduate Bursary].