Managing for Sustainability: the Live Reef Food Fish Trade in Solomon Islands
This was a coastal fisheries development project in Solomon Islands funded by the Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research. Ryan assessed the status of the fishery that targeted species of coral trout and rock cod for the live reef food fish trade from Solomon Islands into China. The multidisciplinary project conducted in Marovo Lagoon, Roviana Lagoon and Ontong Java comprised the following components:
- an assessment of socio economic impact and benefits of the trade to remote coastal communities;
- the biological impacts of intensively targeting spawning aggregations;
- the customary marine tenure and village hierarchical decision-making systems; and
- the legislative framework by which the fishery could be managed to achieve a sustainable and prosperous outcome.
The result was management of the fishery that integrated customary and contemporary arrangements. Reef owners prohibited intensive targeting of spawning aggregations and the management arrangements encouraged adoption of a business model that enabled village fishers to access markets with a variety of products beyond the live reef food fish trade.
Click here to read the final report.
