A review of harvest strategy approaches in fisheries:theory, applications and future challenges
ZHU Jiangfeng
1.College of Marine Living Resource Sciences and Management,Shanghai Ocean University,Shanghai 201306,China;2.Key Laboratory of Sustainable Exploitation of Oceanic Fisheries Resources,Ministry of Education,Shanghai 201306,China;3.Key Laboratory of Sustainable Exploitation of Oceanic Fisheries Resources,Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs,Shanghai 201306,China
Abstract: Traditional methods of fisheries stock management decision-making have been developed since the 1950s to collect data and assess the status of stock, make scientific management recommendations and implement management measures through management measures. The disadvantage of traditional methods is that stock assessment often has large uncertainties, resulting in management recommendations that also have large uncertainties. Beginning in the 1980s and 1990s, with the development of computer simulation technology, the application of harvest strategy (management procedure) methodology in fisheries management has continued to develop, and has now evolved into a relatively mature and complete set of quantitative fisheries stock management methodology system, and plays an important role in the protection of marine mammals and the development and conservation of economic fish stocks. Comparatively speaking, the harvest strategy approach has been less applied and studied in China. This paper summarizes the basic process of traditional fishery resource management decision-making, as well as the characteristics, advantages and challenges of the harvest strategy approach, and proposes that the application of the harvest strategy is conducive to the scientific management and long-term sustainable use of fishery resources under the premise that specific management measures can be effectively implemented. With regard to fisheries that are considering the use of management strategy evaluation to establish harvest strategies, recommendations for future development are put forward, such as strengthening the collection of basic data on fisheries and population biology, strengthening research on population simulation techniques and capacity-building, and accelerating the development and application of new harvest strategies applicable to severely declining stocks, with a view to providing a reference for China in applying the harvest strategy approach to fisheries management decision-making.