Evaluation of the efficiency of Thai fishing regulations to combat Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated (IUU) fishing in Thailand | |
| Author | Nipa Kulanujaree |
| Call Number | AIT Diss. no.AQ-20-01 |
| Subject(s) | Fishery management--Thailand Fishery law and legislation--Thailand Fishery management, International |
| Note | A dissertation submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Aquaculture and Aquatic Resources Management |
| Publisher | Asian Institute of Technology |
| Abstract | Marine fishery is an economically important sector for the livelihood of coastal communities in many Southeast Asian countries. In Thailand however, illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fishing has posed a major challenge and became an obstacle in achieving the national strategy for sustainable management of its marine fishery. Upon recognizing that IUU fishing is not only an impediment to achieving the sustainable use of fisheries resources but also generates problems with regard to accessing the international market, Thailand has reformed its marine fisheries sector by implementing various regulations. This study explains the actions that Thailand has taken to address and eliminate IUU fishing in its waters. At the onset, the MSY for economically important marine species had been determined using the Fox model applied with species groups, as this was found as the most suitable model for analyzing the status of the fisheries resources and calculating the MSY. In the process, both quantitative and qualitative data were used, such as the published fisheries statistics and data from fisheries research vessels, to calculate the MSY and biomass. In-depth interviews were conducted to gather information on fisheries management, the results of which were used as inputs during the setting of the novel regulations in 2015. After implementing the regulations, improvements of the status ofthe marine fishery resources of Thailand could be clearly noted, as explained in details through this study Before 2015, the fisheries management regime in Thailand was open access, and with weak law enforcement, this had resulted in a number of IUU fishing related problems, including the overcapacity of the vessels. Thus, there was a need to determine the number of fishing vessels in operation, so a fishing fleet census was conducted. Then, the Fox model was applied to the fishery by grouping the marine harvest into three species groups, viz., demersal fishes, pelagic fishes, and anchovies, to compute for the maximum sustainable yield (MSY). The resulting MSY was then used as the upper limit reference point for fisheries management, and the precautionary approach was used as the principle to set the total allowable catch (TAC). The fisheries resources were allocated to fishing vessels by issuing fishing licenses that stipulate the TAC size and fishing effort (fishing days per year). From this study, it has been established that some species with high catch in specific fishing gears have the potentials to be managed separately, such as crabs and shrimps. The pelagic fish were not best with the group MSY calculation, considering the nature of fishing activities, as well as their behavior and biology. Moreover, since stocks of some species may collapse, while some may be underutilized when management is based on the group species, implementing additional regulations such as size limitations could avoid any possible collapse of the stocks. Furthermore, the T AE system has been considered as the best control system adoptable for demersal fishes that are harvested by trawl fisheries than with pelagic fishes harvested by purse seine fisheries. So, as a precautionary measure, the nature of fishing activities and catchability of the fishing vessels should be considered in the management of the resources. After a short period of implementation of the new regulations, the status of the fisheries resources has shown improvement signs in terms of the CPUE and stock biomass, as well as signs of successes in the reduction of the fishing effort. In the future, T AE should be made transferable to reduce the number of fishing vessels and increase the number of fishing days per fishing vessel. However, there is a need to closely monitor the catchability of fishing vessels and fishing gears in the T AE system, and close monitoring of the fisheries resources to ensure that the resources are sustainably utilized, and regulations should allow for quick adjustments to be able to respond immediately to emerging concerns that may occur in the fishery. |
| Year | 2020 |
| Type | Dissertation |
| School | School of Environment, Resources, and Development (SERD) |
| Department | Department of Food, Agriculture and Natural Resources (Former title: Department of Food Agriculture, and BioResources (DFAB)) |
| Academic Program/FoS | Aquaculture and Aquatic Resources Management (AQ) |
| Chairperson(s) | Salin, Krishna R.;Yakupitiyage, Amararatne (Co-Chairperson) |
| Examination Committee(s) | Datta, Avishek;Loc Thai Nguyen |
| Scholarship Donor(s) | Ministry of Agriculture and Cooperatives (MOAC), Thailand |
| Degree | Thesis (Ph.D.) - Asian Institute of Technology, 2020 |