Saving the Fish, Saving Themselves

After nearly destroying Pacific coastal fisheries [prior post], fishermen have decided to make a change:

The Pacific Fishery Management Council voted unanimously Friday to make a historic shift in strategy that encourages cooperation, rather than competition, among fishermen who drag nets to catch cod, whiting, rockfish, flounder and sole.

The new approach, often called "individual fishing quotas," will give commercial fishermen from Morro Bay on California's Central Coast to Puget Sound in Washington state the right to bring in their portion of the catch when the seas are safe and they can command higher prices.

Economists have advocated ITQs for years, and it's great to see fishermen voting to adopt them (just slightly before destroying themselves). There are details to work out, but property rights are the way to go...

This story reports on EU plans to cut fishing quotas to try to prevent a population collapse. The trouble is that these quotas have been set too high for years, and they are allocated to counties -- not people. Without ITQs, the fishermen have raced with each other, violating overall quotas and devastated stocks that are close to collapse.

Bottom Line: The Tragedy of the Commons can be prevented by assigning property rights (or having robust community management -- as in here.)

Addendum: Lester Brown makes the case for marine sanctuaries (no human activity). I support them as a way of protecting biodiversity AND primary production capacity.