@article{vilas_effects_2020,

title = {The effects of marine protected areas on ecosystem recovery and fisheries using a comparative modelling approach},

author = {D. Vilas and M. Coll and X. Corrales and J. Steenbeek and C. Piroddi and A. Cal\`{o} and A. Di Franco and T. Font and P. Guidetti and A. Ligas and J. Lloret and G. Prato and R. Sahyoun and P. Sartor and J. Claudet},

url = {https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1002/aqc.3368},

doi = {10.1002/aqc.3368},

issn = {1099-0755},

year  = {2020},

date = {2020-08-14},

journal = {Aquatic Conservation: Marine and Freshwater Ecosystems},

abstract = {The overexploitation of many marine resources and ecosystems calls for the development and implementation of measures to support their recovery and conservation. The potential contributions to support fisheries and ecosystem recovery were assessed at the local level of the three multiple-use marine protected areas (MPAs) of Cerb\`{e}re-Banyuls, Medes Islands, and Cap de Creus, located in the north-western Mediterranean Sea. For each MPA, a food-web model accounting for each protection level (PL) was developed: the fully protected area (FPA), the partially protected area (PPA) and the unprotected area (UPA) surrounding the MPA. Using the resulting nine food-web models, the ecosystem structure and functioning of each PL were compared and characterized, differences and similarities within and among the three MPAs were assessed, and ecosystem response to full protection was evaluated for the three MPAs. Differences in terms of ecosystem structure and functioning were found among PLs. Overall, FPAs presented the most positive effect of protection in terms of ecosystem structure and functioning, followed by PPAs. However, the effects of protection on neighbouring UPAs were hardly noticeable. Similarities between Cerb\`{e}re-Banyuls and Medes Islands MPAs were observed, while Cap de Creus MPA showed the least benefits from protection overall. These results are likely to be due to similarities in the configuration of the protected areas, the levels of enforcement and compliance, and the impact of recreational and small-scale fisheries allowed in the PPAs and UPAs. This study illustrates that well-enforced Mediterranean MPAs, even when small, can yield local positive impacts on the structure and functioning of marine ecosystems that can contribute to support local fisheries.},

keywords = {Ecopath with Ecosim, local study, Marine protected areas (MPA), NW Mediterranean},

pubstate = {published},

tppubtype = {article}

}

@article{bevilacqua_following_2019,

title = {Following the Fish: The Role of Subsistence in a Fish-based Value Chain},

author = {A. H. Bevilacqua and R. Angelini and J. Steenbeek and V. Christensen and A. R. Carvalho},

url = {http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0921800917309564},

doi = {10.1016/j.ecolecon.2019.02.004},

issn = {0921-8009},

year  = {2019},

date = {2019-01-01},

urldate = {2019-01-01},

journal = {Ecological Economics},

volume = {159},

pages = {326--334},

abstract = {This study evaluated the socioeconomic benefits generated by the small-scale fisheries sector based on a socio-economic modeling approach using the value chain plugin in the Ecopath with Ecosim (EwE) software system. Based on an EwE ecosystem model for the Ba\'{i}a Formosa area in Rio Grande do Norte State (Northeast Brazil), a value chain with 14 components was described, including four producers (divided by vessel size categories: sailboat, small, medium, and large engine boat), four processors and distributors, two retailers (in two categories, street markets and restaurants), and three different final consumers (local consumers, subsistence, and tourism). The data was obtained through face-to-face interviews (n = 154) performed between February and November 2014 using the snowball method and tracking the fish around nearby cities. The total revenue from the primary producers (i.e. fishers) was estimated to be US$11 million in 2014. All sectors (including sellers and retailers) encompassed about US$ 44.5 million per year, contributing around US$ 16 million to the GDP. Overall, the price per ton increased three times from it was landed, while employment generation on land was twice that found at sea. Local consumers obtained roughly 66% of production, while subsistence fishers consumed 28% of what was caught. The lowest portion went to tourist consumption (6%). Fish production flowed to local markets and fishers' tables, revealing a clear bias toward the consumption of seafood by local dwellers and the subsistence of local fishers. Few studies have quantified the role of small-scale fishing in providing household income, job creation, and contribution to the GDP. By neglecting such economic and social reliance on natural resource conservation and under the current lack of conservation policies, not only may overfishing become a threat to fishers, but policy makers, managers, and users may inadvertently compromise the continuation of the activity.},

keywords = {fisheries yield, local study, regional study, small-scale fisheries, tourism, value chain},

pubstate = {published},

tppubtype = {article}

}