Achieving%20Sustainable%20Fisheries

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Achieving Sustainable Fisheries
Community-Based Certification (CBC) of the Blue
Crab Fishery of the Northeastern Guimaras Strait,
Negros Occidental, Philippines Testing the Waters
Katrina Jayme, Filemon Romero, Jose
Ingles WWF-Philippines
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Iloilo
Victorias City
E.B. Magalona
Silay City
Talisay City
BACOLOD CITY
Negros Occidental
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Introduction
Certification An incentive scheme using market
forces to promote sustainable resource use.
Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) Certification A
certification scheme based on the MSC Principles
Criteria, using the Fish Forever eco-label to
distinguish certified products.
MSC Principles Criteria (MSC PC) 1 Status of
target stock 2 Status of ecosystem 3 Management
system, operational activities
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Introduction

• MSC Principles Criteria (PC) A sustainable
  fishery...
• can be continued indefinitely at a reasonable
  level
• maximizes the ecological health and abundance of
  marine fish
• maintains the diversity and structure of the
  ecosystem
• conforms to all laws and regulations
• maintains present and future economic
  and social options and
  benefits
• is conducted in a socially and
  economically fair manner

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Introduction

• MSC Certified Fisheries
• Alaskan Salmon
• Burry Inlet Cockles
• Loch Torridon
• New Zealand Hoki
• South West Mackerel Handline Fishery
• Thames Herring
• Western Australia Rock Lobster

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Introduction

• Fisheries Undergoing Assessment
• Alaska Pollock
• Alaska Halibut Sablefish
• British Columbia Salmon
• Chilean Hake
• Mexican Baja California Spiny Lobster
• North Sea Herring
• South African Hake
• South Georgia Toothfish

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Community-Based Certification

• Community-Based Certification (CBC) Approach
• Step 1 Site selection
• Step 2 Establishment of community relations
• Step 3 Biological assessment and market
  analysis
• Step 4 MSC Certification and marketing

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Community-Based Certification

• CBC Approach (1) Site Selection Assess the...
• Sustainability of the fishery
• Existing and potential markets
• Local capacity
• Controls and governance

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Community-Based Certification

• CBC Approach (2) Establishing Community
  Relations
• Strengthen community-based organizations
• Promote responsible management of the blue crab
  fishery
• Protect and conserve crab fish populations and
  the marine environment on which they depend
• Promote economic incentives toward managing the
  precious resource

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Community-Based Certification
CBC Approach (2) Establishing Community
Relations

• Institutional-building
• Capacity-building
• IEC
• Advocacy
• Networking
• Promotion of effective law enforcement

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Community-Based Certification
CBC Approach (3) Biological Assessment ...

• Market Analysis
• Sources
• Sizes, volume, prices of crabs bought and
  sold
• Outlets destinations
• Selling practices
• Marketing costs
• Marketing practices problems

• Length frequency measurements
• Catch composition rates
• Fishery demographics
• Egg count/fecundity

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Community-Based Certification
CBC Approach (4) MSC Certification

• (1) Initial discussion
• (2) Preliminary assessment
• (3) Review outcomes of preliminary assessment
• (4) Final assessment
• (5) Peer review
• (6) Award certificate
• (7) Maintenance visit

• Chain of custody certification

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Community-Based Certification
CBC Approach (4) MSC Certification
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Community-Based Certification

• MSC Accredited Certifiers
• Moody Marine Ltd
• Scientific Certification Services
• SGS Product Process Certification
• Travel Certification Inc.
• TQCSI - MSC
• MacAlister Elliot Partners Limited
• Surefish

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Results Accomplishments
Step 1 Blue crab fishery selected as pilot site
for CBC

• Enforcing Factors
• Blue crab is countrys 6th most important export
  Negros Occidental is in highest blue crab
  producing region
• Market sensitive to certification
• Existing transaction records
• Existing POs FARMCs
• Sympathetic LGUs

• Concerns
• Gaps in knowledge base
• Ecosystem links unexplored
• No management system

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Results Accomplishments
Step 2 Community readied for MSC certification
using CBCRM

• Communities actively participating in resource
  management
• FARMCs politically empowered
• Provincial-wide blue crab fishery ordinance
  initiated
• Gear conversion from gillnets to crab pots
• Community-based enforcement
• Certification introduced

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Results Accomplishments
Step 3 Biological study conducted market
analysis attempted more studies needed

• Biological and fishery stock assessment indicates
  overfishing
• Factors affecting the fishery e.g., fishing
  pressure, exploitation of juvenile crabs,
  wasteful fishing practices, ghost fishing
• Recommended management strategies e.g., regulate
  fishing efforts, minimum size, gear conversion
• Population and genetic study initiated
• Market analysis not completed
• PCRA in 10 barangays

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Results Accomplishments
Market Profile

• Notes on Supply
• Harvested throughout year
• Peak season Jul. - Dec. 30-50 kilos/unit of
  effort
• Lean months Jan. - Apr. 5-15 kilos/unit of
  effort

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Results Accomplishments
Market Profile

• Notes on Demand
• Demand is constant and unsaturated
• Peak season buyers buy as much as 20 boxes (400
  to 1000 kilos/day)
• Price is volatile to available supply

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Results Accomplishments
Market Profile

• Notes on Distribution
• Crab pots vs. gill nets
• Deliver/sorting at buyer station (usually by
  women in family)
• Storage transport
• Bad community-to-market roads
• No landing port

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Results Accomplishments
Market Profile

• Notes on Market Share
• No official data
• Guesstimate
• Phillips 50
• Stellar 25
• Others 25
• Retailers Wholesalers (Alni, Girter,
  NGB/Gotel, Orient Marine, etc.)

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Results Accomplishments
Step 4 MSC Certification delayed

• MSC Certification not pursued assessment could
  not proceed due to data gaps and lack of
  management regime
• Community-Based Certification ? Community-Based
  Coastal Resource Management to prepare the
  fishery for assessment against certification

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Results Accomplishments
CBCRM Food Security of the Northeastern
Guimaras Strait

• Institution-building capacity-building
• Enforcement policy
• CRM planning implementation
• Livelihood fishery technologies
• Sustainability IEC

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Lessons Learned

• MSC Certification may have better potential as a
  reward vs. motivator for sustainable fishery
  management
• Insufficient data made it difficult to choose one
  site over the other in terms of potential for
  certification
• Main challenge in CBC is community mobilization,
  integration
• Clamor for enforcement overshadowed certification
• Direct economic benefits from
  certification uncertain

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Recommendations

• CBCRM as main strategy to prepare fishery for
  assessment
• Define role of the community
• Determine management body
• Collaborate with trade related institutions
• Investigate other consumer-oriented programs
• Investigate other assessment models
• Develop community-based MCS

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Thank You