Place-based fishing livelihoods and the global ocean: the Irish pelagic fleet at home and abroad

Abstract

This paper examines the development of the Irish pelagic fleet and how it has impacted place-based fishing livelihoods in southwest County Donegal, both positively and negatively. As part of this effort, we consider how shifting local and global sociopolitical realities have shaped linkages between resource access and people-place connections in southwest Donegal. We pay particular attention to how Irish fishing opportunities, both at home and abroad, are created and constrained under EU governance and how this drives the displacement of fishing livelihoods from coastal southwest Donegal. We identify power as a key and dynamic mechanism underlying fishery systems in the Irish context. Drawing on interview and ethnographic data we discuss how power is perceived and exercised among local fishery stakeholders, and how this in turn works to shape contemporary adaptive strategies in rural fishery dependent Ireland.

Reconstructing the History and the Effects of Mechanization in a Small-Scale Fishery of Flores, Eastern Indonesia (1917–2014)

“…While the creation of a middle fishing sector through technological development was highly desirable as a means to reduce poverty and to improve productivity of nonindustrialized areas, it was also recognized that mechanization alone was not an adequate solution (Muhammad and Susilo, 1995). If the process was not accompanied by the introduction of economic alternatives at the community level, it could exacerbate economic deficiencies and be the "cause of serious social problems" (Yamamoto, 1980, p. 6.1.5;De la Cruz Modino and Pascual-Fernández, 2013;Donkersloot and Menzies, 2015). In fact, dramatic conflicts arose between trawlers and smallscale fishermen in the immediate years throughout the Western Provinces and Irian Jaya (Bailey, 1987;Roch et al, 1995).…”

“…Historically, the transformation of local fisheries is often a result of intensive technological and capital development promoted by government and non-government agencies (MacFadyen and Corcoran, 2002). Yet, mechanization and commercialization can have dire repercussions on food security and job stability within small-scale fishing sectors, especially if these processes are not part of comprehensive community development programs (Ahmed, 1992;De la Cruz Modino and Pascual-Fernández, 2013;Donkersloot and Menzies, 2015). For example, higher capture efficiency through gear substitution, motorization, and the rapid adoption of new fishing devices can deflate market prices, increase competition, and introduce conflicts of access forcing individuals to exit the fishery Muhammad and Susilo, 1995;Andersson and Ngazi, 1998).…”

“Little kings”: community, change and conflict in Icelandic fisheries

“…One major cause of this decline is the loss of jobs in the fishing industries that were central to rural coastal communities (Bjarnason and Thorlindsson 2006;Stefánsdóttir 2010), a trend also observed in many coastal communities around the world (Corbett 2013;Donkersloot and Menzies 2015). As reviewed above, fishing rights in the form of quota were sold away from rural communities to larger, centralized companies, often followed by the closing down or moving of associated processing facilities and support industries.…”

Aligning the sustainable development goals to the small-scale fisheries guidelines: A case for EU fisheries governance

“…Neoliberalism has been the main vehicle used to govern fisheries in the past decades, serving as a political and economic tool that facilitates the optimal use and allocation of scarce resources [39, p. 565]. This ideology, which is based on management systems that assign fishing opportunities to the most efficient segments of the fishing fleet, is the main reason why small-scale fishing communities have been facing marginalization in the distribution of fisheries resources since the last policy reform [40]- [42], and also in the current period [34], [38], [43], [44].…”

“…As a result, the policies fuel equity concerns, particularly amongst small-scale fisheries, which are not adequately involved in the allocation process. In many cases, due to their market-based nature, the system of allocation, which happens at the Member State level, resembles a privatization scheme that enables the concentration of the fishing licenses and opportunities into fewer hands, thus making it difficult for lowcapital fishing enterprises to remain competitive [44], [45]. This policy also restricts newcomers into the fisheries, as they face an economic barrier to start a new venture.…”