The Influence of Catch Share Management on MSC Assessment Scores

Catch share or rights-based management programs, inter alia, often align the economic incentives of fishermen with conservation goals. Ecological certification of fisheries is intended to improve the sustainability of fisheries. Both catch share management and third party certifications have increased in recent years. An increasing amount of certified fisheries use some form of catch shares system in the management system, posing a question whether catch share management confers an advantage to fisheries seeking certification. This research investigated whether Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) certified fisheries managed using catch shares have measurably different scores from those not managed using catch shares, and whether it is possible to draw conclusions about the effect of catch share management on the suitability of currently uncertified fisheries to become certified. Using Bayesian Belief Networks to model the complex relationships between fishery characteristics, management, and MSC scores, the results indicate that catch share management increased the probability of higher scores for all three principles and a subset of components and performance indicators; and that highest-scoring MSC certified fisheries were about twice as likely to be managed with catch shares as without.