"An Enormous, Immensely Complicated Intervention"

Groundfish, The New England Fishery Management Council, and the World Fisheries Crisis

By: Spencer Apollonio and Jacob J. Dykstra

This book reviews the fisheries of New England – “the poster child of mismanagement” – since 1977. It finds that many of the explanations offered for the New England problems are incorrect or irrelevant or counterproductive. It suggests that the problems lie in two general categories: first, the legislative and administrative context of management; and second and more serious, fundamental issues concerning fishing technologies, and lack of effective effort control strategies and an operational hypothesis of the dynamics of marine ecosystems. These latter issues are not confined to New England, but are inherent in most marine fisheries wherever they may be found. The book suggests a new concept for benign and selective fishing technologies, and it recommends a thorough review and analysis of the efficacy of effort control concepts. It proposes a management strategy based upon the hierarchical concept of ecosystems that could eliminate many of the current problems of management.