FEMAR

Fishery Ecosystem Risk Assessment:

Management agencies often require development and implementation of a management framework that sets forth the decision-making philosophy and problem-solving approach desired to meet current and future conservation objectives that protect resources, while enhancing visitor experiences. This framework requires development of an assessment and management approach that emphasizes strategy over tactics. To accomplish the task of developing an integrated fishery management system, FEMAR looked at fisheries assessment and management from a systems science perspective. In our systems approach, the fisheries assessment and management "system" is an organized set of scientific protocols and methods designed to achieve three main goals: (1) to understand fisheries resources and habitats within the context of the aquatic ecosystem; (2) to assess the impacts of human activities and the economic drivers on these resources; and (3) to analyze and evaluate the degree of success of proposed and implemented management policies in mitigating human impacts on fisheries resources. The systems approach links the acquisition and assimilation of physical, biological, and fishery databases to advanced statistical and modeling procedures to conduct multispecies stock assessments.

Using a quantitative systems approach, FEMAR has conducted multispecies coral reef fish stock assessments for Biscayne National Park, the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary, and the management consortium for the Dry Tortugas region. A key to our assessments was the strategic use of data for 'average size' (in length) of fish in the exploitable phase of the population as a quantitative indicator of stock response to exploitation. The average size statistic is extremely robust to the data source from which the population estimates are made (e.g. RVC or head boat survey data). Our analyses provide a rigorous reference point for reef fish stock status and spatial abundance.

To address fishery management benchmark criteria emerging out of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Commission & Management Act (MSFMCA), FEMAR conducted new analyses that established fishery limit control rules consistent with the precautionary approach. Criteria used to set target catch levels are explicitly risk averse, because the precautionary approach requires avoidance of overfishing, restoration of already overfished stocks, explicit specification of management objectives including operational targets and constraints (e.g. target and limit reference points), taking account of uncertainty by being more conservative, and avoidance of excess harvest capacity. In addition, this approach requires formulation of decision rules that stipulate in advance what actions will be taken to prevent overfishing and promote stock rebuilding.

Limit control theory establishes reference points designed to constrain exploitation within safe biological limits so that stocks retain the ability to produce maximum sustainable yield. Overfishing is a level of fishing mortality that jeopardizes the long-term capacity of a stock to generate maximum sustainable yield (MSY). Thus, the fishing mortality rate that generates MSY should be regarded as the minimum standard for limit reference points. According to this limit control, fishing effort in the Florida Keys ranges from 2-10 times the level that meets Federal criteria for sustainability for some exploited stocks, and our most current estimates suggest 34 out of 35 key exploited stocks are overfished!

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