6 - Case Studies

Summary

This chapter briefly describes five fisheries in which ITQs or related systems have recently been instituted. (See Ocean Studies Board 1999 for other case studies of ITQ fisheries.) The five fisheries cover a variety of species and fishing techniques. In most cases fish stocks were severely depleted, or in imminent danger of becoming so, when the ITQ system was initiated. In all cases the new management regime has apparently stemmed or reversed the depletion of the stock.

Economically speaking, the results are less clear. Vessel owners are notably reluctant to provide details about the profitability of their operations, and few of the cited references include detailed cost data or profit estimates. Profitability is sometimes inferred from the fact that quota prices have increased over time. An alternative explanation is that the price increase is mere speculation. Without actual financial data the two explanations cannot be separated.

Georges Bank Sea Scallop Fishery

The Atlantic sea scallop is distributed over the Northwest Atlantic continental shelf, from the Gulf of St Lawrence to Cape Hatteras, with a major population on Georges bank off New England. Scallops, caught by bottom dredging, are processed at sea, the product being fresh or frozen scallop “meats” typically sold in stores and restaurants. The description given here is condensed from Repetto (2001) and Edwards (2002). Repetto compares the management system for US and Canadian fisheries, calling this a “natural experiment in fisheries management.”