August 12, 2019 — In a new paper published in “Science Advanced,” National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration researchers Jason Link and Reg Watson from the University of Tasmania’s Institute for Marine Antarctic Studies suggested new ways of monitoring and managing overfishing.
They suggest a broader, whole ecosystem-focused approach to monitoring and research, rather than the population-by-population, smaller scale approach that most management uses now.
“In simple terms, to successfully manage fisheries in an ecosystem, the rate of removal for all fishes combined must be equal to or less than the rate of renewal for all those fishes,” said Link.
Link is the senior scientist for ecosystem management at NOAA Fisheries and a former fisheries scientist at the Northeast Fisheries Science Center in Woods Hole.