Snapshot
| Outcome: | Substantial progress towards resilient and productive marine ecosystems in British Columbia, the California Current and New England as measured by implementation of area-based management and fisheries management reform. |
| Geography: | Primarily British Columbia, the California Current and New England. These were selected for their significant ecosystem services (including important fisheries), momentum to pursue innovative solutions, and potential to serve as models for sustainable ocean management. |
| Strategies: | - Implement comprehensive area-based management (ABM) by spatially dividing the marine environment for a variety of compatible uses and accounting for the many stressors on the ecosystem
- Reform fisheries management by aligning economic incentives with conservation outcomes, promoting scientifically-sound total allowable catch (TAC) limits and other management measures that account for ecosystem considerations, and developing conservation-minded technologies
- Execute science needed to inform policy and management
- Employ strategic communications to garner demand for better ocean management
- Use policy reform to assure durable and lasting solutions
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Initiative Overview
The oceans are in trouble due to overfishing (including bycatch, discards and habitat destruction), habitat alteration (including coastal development, resource extraction and aquaculture), pollution, invasive species, and climate change. Current ineffective management regimes, misaligned economic incentives, and the development of efficient yet non-selective fishing technology have allowed overfishing and habitat destruction to degrade marine ecosystems. For example, of the 300 fish species or stocks that the U.S. National Marine Fisheries Service monitors, more than 90 are either overexploited or recovering from overexploitation. Poor fishing practices also destroy habitat and reduce ecosystem resilience to other effects of human activities. Additionally, overfishing diminishes the production of fish for food, limits the economic productivity of fisheries, restricts recreational opportunities, and reduces genetic diversity.
The Foundation’s Marine Conservation Initiative focuses on three targeted geographies: British Columbia, the California Current ecosystem, and New England. As conservation outcomes are achieved, lessons learned are transferred beyond these geographies.
Two of the largest, yet most solvable, threats are overfishing and habitat destruction. To combat these threats, the Initiative supports a comprehensive area-based management (ABM) approach intended to reduce conflict and promote conservation by specifying the most appropriate uses for particular marine areas. The Initiative also works to reform fisheries management by aligning economic incentives with resource protection and promote the establishment of scientifically-sound TAC limits, taking into account ecosystem considerations. To help reform fisheries management the Initiative also promotes conservation-minded technological innovations, including cleaner fishing gear, spatial planning tools, and monitoring and enforcement technology.
Communication activities play an important role to facilitate information and knowledge exchange between scientists, decision-makers, managers, resource users and the public to promote lessons learned and best practices beyond targeted geographies. A focus on necessary policy changes at local, regional and national levels helps to ensure the framework and durability of the Initiative's outcomes. Targeted science activities ensure the Initiative's work is science-based.