Overcoming Three Hurdles to IFQs in US Fisheries

Thu, 01 Apr 2004 00:00:00 EST

Introduction

For decades, U.S. federal ﬁsheries policy has relied on direct regulations to pre-vent overﬁshing. Such an approach has not eliminated overﬁshing, nor has it prevented the enormous waste and hazards of ﬁshing under a destructive race for ﬁsh. The good news is that there is a better way to manage our ocean ﬁsheries. Individual ﬁshing quotas (IFQs), also called individual trans-ferable quotas (ITQs), have proven effective in restoring health and sanity in a host of ﬁsheries around the globe.

In spite of these successes, there are a number of obstacles to IFQ implemen-tation. To begin to address these, PERC, Reason Foundation, and Environmental Defense held a luncheon brieﬁng on Capi-tol Hill on November 12, 2003, for federal policy makers and their staffs. The brieﬁng, titled “Overcoming Hurdles to Implement-ing Individual Transferable Quotas (ITQs) in U.S. Fisheries,” was well-attended and opening remarks were made by Congress-man Wayne Gilchrist (R-MD), who plans to introduce legislation re-authorizing the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Management Act. Mr.Gilchrist assured everyone in atten-dance that ﬁshery management legislation needs to be “as reasonable, as pragmatic as possible,” and needless to say, more effec-tive than in the past.

The following discussion, based on the November 12 brieﬁng, describes the prob-lems in U.S. ﬁsheries, the potential role of IFQs, and the three most contentious issues surrounding their implementation. These are the questions of whether a two-tiered system that includes both IFQs and individual processor quotas (IPQs) is needed, what restrictions, if any, to place on IFQs, and whether or not to place a sunset provision on IFQs.

Support for the brieﬁng and this booklet is provided by the Alex C. Walker Educational & Charitable Foundation, the Bradley Fund for the Environment, and the Charles G. Koch Charitable Foundation. It is produced by Dianna Rienhart and is available in hard copy from PERC, Reason Foundation, or Environmental Defense or online at www.ifqsforﬁsheries.org.

Reason Foundation - Authors > Pete Emerson

Overcoming Three Hurdles to IFQs in US Fisheries

Introduction