Coastal Fisheries Of Latin America And The Caribbean

It includes an introductory overview chapter, a set of 12 chapters each examining fisheries of a particular country, and two major conceptual and analytical synthesis chapters.

One of the main goals in fisheries governance is to promote viability and sustainability in small-scale fishing communities. This is not an easy task given external and internal pressure, including environmental change and competition with other economic sectors searching for development in the coastal region. A comprehensive understanding of small-scale fisheries in their own context, and from a regional perspective, is an important step in supporting the implementation of the Voluntary Guidelines on Securing Sustainable Small-Scale Fisheries (SSF Guidelines). This book contributes to the global effort by offering knowledge, insights and lessons about small-scale fisheries in Latin America and the Caribbean. The 20 case studies included in the book make explicit the various dimensions that are intrinsic to small-scale fisheries in the region, and identify conditions and situations that affect the wellbeing of fishing communities. The book offers insights regarding the challenges faced by small-scale fisheries in the region, and, aligning with the objectives of the SSF Guidelines, provides lessons and experiences about how to make small-scale fishing communities viable while maintaining sustainable fisheries. This important book illustrates the complexity, diversity, and dynamics of small-scale fisheries in the Latin American and Caribbean region and presents experiences, tools, and approaches to lead towards sustainable and viable fisheries. The reader will gain a new understanding on the range of actions, approaches, and information needed for their successful management. John F. Caddy, International Fisheries Expert This book, prepared by the Too Big To Ignore partnership, constitutes a very valuable resource for policy makers, fisheries scientists, non-governmental organizations, civil society organizations, and fishing communities interested in putting in place sound management strategies, research, and actions to contribute to the sustainability of small-scale fisheries and food security in Latin America and the Caribbean region. Juan Carlos Seijo, Professor of Fisheries Bioeconomics at Marist University of Merida

This book reviews the frameworks and implementation of marine, fishery and coastal laws and policies in Chile, Mexico and Peru. Chile, Mexico and Peru share biodiverse coastal and marine environments which are being affected by unregulated and informal developments, and thus share similar challenges. Each country is currently at a different stage of advancement in their institutional response to these complex challenges. By providing a comparison of the frameworks, approaches and overall implementation of policies and laws, this book acts as a tool to influence and inform further efforts in conservation and sustainable use of marine resources, particularly fisheries, in these countries and others in Latin America and the Caribbean. A broad range of issues are covered including food security, tourism, fisheries, oil and mineral extraction from the seabed, wind power, coastal and marine pollution and endangered species conservation. The chapters compare how each country addresses these issues from an institutional, legal and policy perspective. The book concludes by identifying common lessons, reoccurring challenges and develops scalable recommendations applicable to the case study countries and the wider region. The book will be of interest to advanced students, policy makers and researchers in marine and fishery science, law and policy.

The book presents a collection of large-scale network-modeling studies on coastal systems in Latin America. It includes a novel description of the functioning of coastal complex ecosystems and also predicts how natural and human-made disturbances percolate through the networks. Coastal areas belong to the most populated ecosystems around the globe, and are massively influenced by human impacts such as shipping, mining, fisheries, tourism, pollution and human settlements. Even though many of these activities have facilitated socio-economic development, they have also caused a significant deterioration in natural populations, communities and ecosystems worldwide. Covering coastal marine ecosystems of Latin America such as the NE and SE Pacific, NW Atlantic and Caribbean areas, it discusses the construction of quantitative (Ecopath-Ecosim-Ecospace and Centrality of Node Sets) and semi-quantitative (Loop Analysis) multispecies trophic-network models to describe and assess the impacts of natural and human interventions like pelagic and benthic fishing as well as natural events such as El Niño, and La Niña. The book also features steady state (and/or near moving equilibrium) and dynamical models to support the management of exploited organisms, and applies and quantifies macroscopic indices, based on Ascendency (Ulanowicz) and Local Stability (Levins ́ Loop Analysis). Further, it discusses the determination of the Keystone Species Complex Index, which is a holistic extension of the classical concept of Keystone Species (Paine), offering novel strategies for conservation monitoring and management.

Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) region is exceptionally biodiverse. It contains about half of the world’s remaining tropical forests, nearly one-fifth of its coastal habitats, and some of its most productive agricultural and marine areas. But agriculture, fishing and other human activities linked to rapid population and economic growth increasingly threaten that biodiversity. Moreover, poverty, weak regulatory capacity, and limited political will hamper conservation. Given this dilemma, it is critically important to design conservation strategies on the basis of the best available information about both biodiversity and the track records of the various policies that have been used to protect it. This rigorously researched book has three key aims. It describes the status of biodiversity in LAC, the main threats to this biodiversity, and the drivers of these threats. It identifies the main policies being used to conserve biodiversity and assesses their effectiveness and potential for further implementation. It proposes five specific lines of practical action for conserving LAC biodiversity, based on: green agriculture; strengthening terrestrial protected areas and co-management; improving environmental governance; strengthening coastal and marine resource management; and improving biodiversity data and policy evaluation.

In view of the importance of other effective area-based conservation measures (OECMs) for biodiversity, and the need to improve individual countries’ capacity to report fisheries-related OECMs and understand how the fisheries sector contributes to current and future area-based biodiversity conservation objectives, FAO has been carrying out a series of activities to support countries to identify and implement OECMs. [Author] These activities include the organization of workshops and the development of practical guidance, as requested by FAO’s Committee on Fisheries (COFI). [Author] With the support of the Organización del Sector Pesquero y Acuícola del Istmo Centroamericano (Organization of the Fisheries and Aquaculture Sector of the Central American Isthmus [OSPECA]), FAO organized the workshop on other effective area-based conservation measures in fisheries-related areas in Latin America and the Caribbean. [Author] The workshop was held on 27–28 March 2023 in the city of San José, Costa Rica. [Author] This workshop supported Member Countries of the Commission for Small-scale and Artisanal Fisheries and Aquaculture of Latin America and the Caribbean (COPPESAALC), as well as regional and national fisheries-related organizations in the Latin American and Caribbean regions to: (i) apply CBD criteria for the identification of OECMs; (ii) understand the challenges, opportunities and needs that arise in the identification of fisheries‑related OECMs; and (iii) synthesize lessons learned and obtain recommendations. [Author] To achieve these objectives, topics discussed included: concepts and criteria for the identification, evaluation and reporting of OECMs; examples of OECMs in the world; conservation strategies in Latin America and the potential contribution of OECMs to these; the framework for fisheries governance and area-based management in Latin America; Argentina’s progress in recognizing OECMs; and the presentation of four case studies carried out in Chile, Costa Rica, Guatemala, and Mexico. [Author] The workshop enabled extensive exchanges on the difficulties of interpreting the concepts and criteria for the identification, evaluation, and reporting of OECMs, as well as the key points, challenges, and difficulties in analysing and considering potential OECMs. [Author]