Browsing by Author "Estevez, Rodrigo A."

Now showing 1 - 7 of 7
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    Artisanal Fisher Association Leaders' Estimates of Poaching in Their Exclusive Access Management Areas
    (2022) Romero, Pedro; Estevez, Rodrigo A.; Romero, Pablo; Gelcich, Stefan
    In marine environments, poaching can become a key threat to marine ecosystem conservation. Poaching can occur in marine protected areas and/or in fishery management areas. Unfortunately, understanding the magnitude and characteristics of poaching under community based and co-management governance schemes in coastal and marine environments, has not received the attention it deserves. In Chile, a system of Territorial Users Rights for Fisheries (TURF) has been recognized as one of the largest experiences of small-scale fisheries co-management at a global scale. Currently, poaching is one of the main threats to the TURF system in Chile. In this article, we assessed poaching of a highly valuable benthic resource (Concholepas concholepas) from TURF management areas. We estimated artisanal fisher association leaders' perceptions of poaching within their TURFs and explore determinants of poaching for Concholepas concholepas. Poaching of Concholepas concholepas showed differences along the studied sites. As expected, the greater abundance of Concholepas concholepas in the management areas generates an increased incentive to poach. Areas that make the greatest investment in surveillance are those most affected by poaching. However, our study cannot determine the effectiveness of current levels of surveillance on illegal extraction. Results show older areas tend to reduce the levels of illegal extraction, which could indicate a greater capacity and experience to control poaching. Supporting fisher associations in enforcing TURFs and following up on sanctions against perpetrators are conditioning factors, highlighted by fisher leaders, for TURF sustainability. The approach used in this study provides insights to prioritize geographies and opportunities to address poaching in small-scale co-managed fisheries.
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    Assessing Procedural Justice in the Administration of Small-Scale Benthic Fisheries in Chile
    (2021) Estevez, Rodrigo A.; Jerez, Gabriel; Gelcich, Stefan
    In order to navigate toward ocean sustainability, policies, programs, and scientific research must address issues of justice. In fisheries management, justice has generally been understood in terms of the distribution of social, cultural, and economic benefits. However, there are also important procedural justice challenges in the fisheries system, which are fundamental to the long-term sustainability and equity of the oceans. Procedural justice is related to the conditions under which the negotiation for benefit distribution takes place. That is, the procedures, structures, and processes that lead to the distribution of resources. In this study, we empirically assess fishers' perceptions of procedural justice components within a small-scale fishery management policy in Chile which has been shifting toward a polycentric type of governance during the past 7 years. We specifically assess perceptions of management committee members. Management committees have been constituted as spaces of collective action for participatory decision-making. We decompose procedural justice in seven subcomponents and assess perceptions associated to achievement in the administration of fisheries. Our results show that management committee members perceive heterogeneity in the achievement of different procedural justice components, which is a central element in achieving equitable development in the oceans. The highest perceptions of achievement were found in the procedures for the selection of participants, the use of various types of technical and local knowledge for decision-making, and the perception by participants of ethical and impartial procedures. We also identified significant challenges related to an inflexible legal structure that hinders adaptive management and learning as a tool for institutional transformation. In addition, mechanisms for communicating decisions to users and clear accountability procedures were perceived as weak. It is critical to address these gaps as they can jeopardize the implementation and legitimacy of fisheries management. Focusing on different components of procedural justice can provide an important lens through which advances and gaps in fisheries policy can be identified and worked upon.
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    Exploring relationships between gender and collective action in artisanal fisher associations of Central Chile
    (2022) Vargas Poulsen, Camila; Rivera, Antonella; Ortiz, Veronica; Carlos Castilla, Juan; Estevez, Rodrigo A.; Reyes-Mendy, Francisca; Gelcich, Stefan
    fisher associations have experienced a shift towards gender inclusivity over the past decade. We used the social-ecological systems framework developed by Elinor Ostrom to explore relationships between gender and collective action. Questionnaires were used to determine (1) motivations to join an association, (2) socio-demographic information, (3) perceptions on key collective action dimensions around leadership and norms within the association, and (4) perceived social performance. Surveys targeted artisanal fisher associations in Chile with varying gender compositions: exclusively male members, exclusively female members, mixed-gender led by a man, and mixed -gender led by a woman. Our results show that women and men have distinct motivations to join an association. Women are primarily motivated by a sense of belonging, while men are mainly motivated by the possibility of an increase in income. Furthermore, associations comprised of women displayed higher valuations on leadership, entrepreneurship, and participation in activities. This likely led to the significantly higher performance of associations that incorporated women (either women-only or mixed gender) in efficiency (30.1%- 40.3% higher) and cooperation (13.8%-30. 8% higher). Our results extend the social-ecological systems framework towards understanding the role of gender in collective action for fisheries management and specifically contribute to build knowledge and implement novel policy which considers gender in artisanal fisheries in Chile.
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    Local ecological knowledge (LEK) suggests overfishing and sequential depletion of Peruvian coastal groundfish
    (2023) Castagnino, Fabio; Estevez, Rodrigo A.; Caillaux, Matias; Velez-Zuazo, Ximena; Gelcich, Stefan
    Objective: Fish populations targeted by recreational and artisanal fisheries remain largely unassessed in low- and middle-income countries. This generally results in a lack of regulatory action from government agencies, thus aggravating the risk of overfishing. In this context, sources of historical information, such as local ecological knowledge (LEK), are key to providing insight on the status of fish populations and informing management. Systematized elicitation processes have increasingly shown an ability to produce quantitative indicators while reducing biases and caveats inherent to expert knowledge. In this study, we assessed changes in composition of the catch, species abundance, and geographical distribution of the catch for 10 data-poor coastal groundfish species of Peru using LEK.Methods: We designed and conducted a structured elicitation process to gather LEK on these species from 40 recreational and commercial spearfishers in Peru. We then used the obtained data to develop a set of indices and analyzed them statistically to identify trends and the magnitude of changes over time, if any, between the years 1960 and 2019.Result: Our results show a significant decline in the relative participation (a species' catch proportion relative to the total catch) and abundance of seven assessed species in the catch as well as a major reduction in their geographical distribution. For some species, decreases in relative participation within the catch and decreases in average daily catch, a measure that may indicate changes in abundance, were statistically significant across the time span of the study. Average daily catch was between 1% and 15% of their historical high values. Some species have experienced a reduction of 60-100% in the geographical distribution of their catch.Conclusion: Results suggests a scenario of overfishing and sequential depletion of the Galapagos Sheephead Wrasse Semicossyphus darwini, Pacific Goliath Grouper Epinephelus quinquefasciatus, Harlequin Wrasse Bodianus eclancheri, Grape-eye Seabass Hemilutjanus macrophthalmos, Chino Medialuna ancietae, Pacific Beakfish Oplegnathus insignis, and Broomtail Grouper Mycteroperca xenarcha. We highlight how the application of expert elicitation methods can help to build LEK-based fishery indicators that are useful for assessing data-poor fisheries and providing critical information to prompt management discussions.
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    Monitoring data poor small-scale estuarine fisheries: a proposal from the striped mullet (Mugil cephalus) fishery in the Rapel River, Chile
    (2024) Wiff, Rodrigo; Flores, Andres; Peralta, Leonardo; Estevez, Rodrigo A.; Gacitua, Santiago; Gelcich, Stefan
    Chile has a relatively long history of monitoring and managing large-scale commercial fish stocks. However, many other small-scale fisheries, particularly those operating in estuaries, usually lack basic fisheries and biological information. International experience indicates that a monitoring system designed for large-scale stocks cannot simply be resized to address the complexity, relatively low total economic value, and the large number of actors and supply chains in small-scale fisheries. This article proposes a strategy to monitor data-poor fisheries operating in estuaries. The striped mullet (Mugil cephalus), locally known as "lisa", in the Rapel River, central Chile, was selected to establish a pilot monitoring program for small-scale fish resources. From May 2022 to May 2023, fisheries information, including fleet description, catch and effort data, and fish biological attributes such as length and weight, were collected and described for the first time in the region. Drawing insights from this case study, we propose developing a generic monitoring system tailored specifically for monitoring fish stocks in estuaries. This conceptualization is based on: i) change agents, who are individuals trained to work with both the social and biological dimensions of each coastal fish stock; ii) experienced fisheries scientists outside government agencies; and iii) local fishers' knowledge to provide constant feedback for adapting temporal and spatial scales for monitoring. This monitoring scheme is cost-effective and can be efficiently replicated in other estuarine fisheries in Chile.
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    Public Officials' Knowledge of Advances and Gaps for Implementing the Ecosystem Approach to Fisheries in Chile
    (2021) Estevez, Rodrigo A.; Gelcich, Stefan
    The United Nations calls on the international community to implement an ecosystem approach to fisheries (EAF) that considers the complex interrelationships between fisheries and marine and coastal ecosystems, including social and economic dimensions. However, countries experience significant national challenges for the application of the EAF. In this article, we used public officials' knowledge to understand advances, gaps, and priorities for the implementation of the EAF in Chile. For this, we relied on the valuable information held by fisheries managers and government officials to support decision-making. In Chile, the EAF was established as a mandatory requirement for fisheries management in 2013. Key positive aspects include the promotion of fishers' participation in inter-sectorial Management Committees to administrate fisheries and the regulation of bycatch and trawling on seamounts. Likewise, Scientific Committees formal roles in management allow the participation of scientists by setting catch limits for each fishery. However, important gaps were also identified. Officials highlighted serious difficulties to integrate social dimensions in fisheries management, and low effective coordination among the institutions to implement the EAF. We concluded that establishing clear protocols to systematize and generate formal instances to build upon government officials' knowledge seems a clear and cost effective way to advance in the effective implementation of the EAF.
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    Using expert knowledge to propose recreational marine reef-fish management measures in Chile
    (2024) Estevez, Rodrigo A.; Godoy, Natalio; Araya, Miguel; Azocar, Cristian; de la Barra, Christian; Bardi, Francisca; Fernandez-Urzua, Francisco; Garcia, Marcelo; Hiriart-Bertrand, Luciano; Lomonico, Serena; Medina, Marianela; Naretto, Javier; Ojeda, F. Patricio; Pequeno, German; Ponce, Francisco; Pulgar, Jose; Perez-Matus, Alejandro; Rivera, Javier; Smith, Andres; Toro Da Ponte, Jorge; Torres-Canete, Felipe; Vasquez, Julio A.; Gelcich, Stefan
    Marine recreational fisheries often lack necessary information to perform assessments and develop sustainable management strategies. In Chile, although reef-fish fisheries have been signaled as overexploited, there are still no commercial or recreational regulations regarding bans, catch limits, or size limits. We implemented an expert elicitation protocol to propose management measures to regulate recreational reef-fish harvests of 17 reef-fish species. Sixteen experts estimated minimum legal sizes, temporal closures, and maximum number of individuals harvested per person per trip (known as "bag limits"). Experts also prioritized management measures for each of 17 reef-fish species. Maximum number of individuals harvested per person per trip varied between 1 and 7. In addition, permanent bans were recommended for some species, such as acha (Medialuna ancietae), pejeperro (Semicossyphus darwini), and San Pedro (Oplegnathus insignis). We concluded that information gathered through expert elicitation can play a key role to inform data-poor recreational fishery management. Expert elicitation protocols that include iterative process, based on individual estimates and an open expert discussion phase, provide the necessary enabling environment to identify a variety of management measures. While future challenges include the development of mechanisms to promote acceptability and compliance for recreational fisheries management, the approach presented here is important to initiate much needed discussions.