Inshore Fisheries and Conservation Authority

Last updated

There are ten Inshore Fisheries and Conservation Authorities (IFCAs) in England. The ten IFCA Districts cover English coastal waters out to 6 nautical miles from Territorial Baselines. Although autonomous, all IFCAs have a shared 'vision' to "lead, champion and manage a sustainable marine environment and inshore fisheries, by successfully securing the right balance between social, environmental and economic benefits to ensure healthy seas, sustainable fisheries and a viable industry". IFCAs have shared powers and duties which are found in the Marine and Coastal Access Act, 2009. [1]

The ten IFCAs are:

The membership of IFCA committees is made up of 'general members' appointed by the Marine Management Organisation for their skills and experience relevant to the management of inshore fisheries. The general members are joined by local authority appointed members, appointed by the constituent authorities which fund the IFCAs. On each IFCA a member is also appointed from Natural England, the Marine Management Organisation and the Environment Agency.

Under s.153 of the Marine and Coastal Access Act 2009 (1) The authority for an IFC district must manage the exploitation of sea fisheries resources in that district. (2) In performing its duty under subsection (1), the authority for an IFC district must: (a) seek to ensure that the exploitation of sea fisheries resources is carried out in a sustainable way, (b) seek to balance the social and economic benefits of exploiting the sea fisheries resources of the district with the need to protect the marine environment from, or to promote its recovery from, the effects of such exploitation, (c) take any other steps which in the authority's opinion are necessary or expedient for the purpose of making a contribution to the achievement of sustainable development, and (d) seek to balance the different needs of persons engaged in the exploitation of sea fisheries resources in the district

Under s.154 of the Marine and Coastal Access Act 2009 IFCAs must further the conservation objectives of marine conservation zones.

IFCAs are funded by Local Authorities and this funding is, in part, underpinned by Defra via an Area Based Grant of c. £3 million annually. [2] Since the ten IFCAs were created in 2011, they have been responsible for transforming the way fishing activities are undertaken in Marine Protected Areas as a consequence of the UK government's "revised approach to the management of commercial fishing in European Marine Sites" [3] and have introduced 17 byelaws to protect the most vulnerable features within European Marine Sites. Southern IFCA has introduced measures which restrict Bottom Towed Fishing Gear from 25% of the IFCA District. [4] IFCAs are also progressing measures to balance the needs of the commercial and recreational fisheries and examples of emerging plans are seen in Devon and Severn IFCA.

All ten IFCAs each own and operate Fisheries Patrol Vessels, which range from the 27m coastal Patrol Vessel FPV Saint Piran operated by Cornwall IFCA to smaller rigid inflatable vessels. The IFCAs also operate research vessels, deploying side scan sonar and underwater cameras to inform their management.

Every four years a report on the conduct and operations of IFCAs is presented to the UK parliament. The 2014-2018 report found that IFCAs "have demonstrated the local leadership that is expected of them as statutory regulators" and that "future funding, compounded by increasing responsibilities, also emerges as a significant factor in the effective delivery of the IFCAs' statutory duties". [5]

The IFCAs are represented nationally by the Association of Inshore Fisheries and Conservation Authorities.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sustainable fishery</span> Sustainable fishing for the long term fishing

A conventional idea of a sustainable fishery is that it is one that is harvested at a sustainable rate, where the fish population does not decline over time because of fishing practices. Sustainability in fisheries combines theoretical disciplines, such as the population dynamics of fisheries, with practical strategies, such as avoiding overfishing through techniques such as individual fishing quotas, curtailing destructive and illegal fishing practices by lobbying for appropriate law and policy, setting up protected areas, restoring collapsed fisheries, incorporating all externalities involved in harvesting marine ecosystems into fishery economics, educating stakeholders and the wider public, and developing independent certification programs.

The goal of fisheries management is to produce sustainable biological, environmental and socioeconomic benefits from renewable aquatic resources. Wild fisheries are classified as renewable when the organisms of interest produce an annual biological surplus that with judicious management can be harvested without reducing future productivity. Fishery management employs activities that protect fishery resources so sustainable exploitation is possible, drawing on fisheries science and possibly including the precautionary principle.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Magnuson–Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act</span>

The Magnuson–Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (MSFCMA), commonly referred to as the Magnuson–Stevens Act (MSA), is the legislation providing for the management of marine fisheries in U.S. waters. Originally enacted in 1976 to assert control of foreign fisheries that were operating within 200 nautical miles off the U.S. coast, the legislation has since been amended, in 1996 and 2007, to better address the twin problems of overfishing and overcapacity. These ecological and economic problems arose in the domestic fishing industry as it grew to fill the vacuum left by departing foreign fishing fleets.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Unsustainable fishing methods</span> Fishing methods with expected lowering of fish population

Unsustainable fishing methods refers to the utilization of the various fishing methods in order to capture or harvest fish at a rate which sees the declining of fish populations over time. These methods are observed to facilitate the destructive fishing practices that destroy ecosystems within the ocean, and more readily results in overfishing, the depletion of fish populations at a rate that cannot be sustained.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing</span> International issue

Illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing (IUU) is an issue around the world. Fishing industry observers believe IUU occurs in most fisheries, and accounts for up to 30% of total catches in some important fisheries.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fishing industry in Scotland</span> Aquaculture and marine catching in the UK countrt

The fishing industry in Scotland comprises a significant proportion of the United Kingdom fishing industry. A recent inquiry by the Royal Society of Edinburgh found fishing to be of much greater social, economic and cultural importance to Scotland than it is relative to the rest of the UK. Scotland has just 8.4 per cent of the UK population but lands at its ports over 60 per cent of the total catch in the UK.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Vessel monitoring system</span>

Vessel Monitoring Systems (VMS) is a general term to describe systems that are used in commercial fishing to allow environmental and fisheries regulatory organizations to track and monitor the activities of fishing vessels. They are a key part of monitoring control and surveillance (MCS) programs at national and international levels. VMS may be used to monitor vessels in the territorial waters of a country or a subdivision of a country, or in the Exclusive Economic Zones (EEZ) that extend 200 nautical miles (370.4 km) from the coasts of many countries. VMS systems are used to improve the management and sustainability of the marine environment, through ensuring proper fishing practices and the prevention of illegal fishing, and thus protect and enhance the livelihoods of fishermen.

The South East Atlantic Fisheries Organisation (SEAFO) is an organization that maintains controls over fishing and fishing related acts in the Southeastern Atlantic Ocean.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fishing industry in New Zealand</span>

As with other countries, New Zealand’s 200 nautical miles exclusive economic zone gives its fishing industry special fishing rights. It covers 4.1 million square kilometres. This is the sixth largest zone in the world, and is fourteen times the land area of New Zealand.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fishing industry in the United States</span>

As with other countries, the 200 nautical miles (370 km) exclusive economic zone (EEZ) off the coast of the United States gives its fishing industry special fishing rights. It covers 11.4 million square kilometres, which is the second largest zone in the world, exceeding the land area of the United States.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Marine Directorate (Scottish Government)</span> Directorate of the Scottish Government

The Scottish Government's Marine Directorate is responsible for managing Scotland's seas and freshwater fisheries along with delivery partners NatureScot and the Scottish Environment Protection Agency.

Sustainable sushi is sushi made from fished or farmed sources that can be maintained or whose future production does not significantly jeopardize the ecosystems from which it is acquired. Concerns over the sustainability of sushi ingredients arise from greater concerns over environmental, economic and social stability, and human health.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Marine Management Organisation</span> UK non-departmental public body

The Marine Management Organisation (MMO) is an executive non-departmental public body in the United Kingdom established under the Marine and Coastal Access Act 2009, with responsibility for English waters. The MMO exists to make a significant contribution to sustainable development in the marine area, and to promote the UK government's vision for clean, healthy, safe, productive and biologically diverse oceans and seas. The MMO aims to focus all of its activities and resources to meet its mission of enabling sustainable growth in the UK's marine area through 5 strategic outcomes:

The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to fisheries:

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Marine policy of the Barack Obama administration</span>

The Marine Policy of the Barack Obama administration comprises several significant environmental policy decisions for the oceans made during his two terms in office from 2009 to 2017. By executive action, US President Barack Obama increased fourfold the amount of protected marine space in waters under United States control, setting a major precedent for global ocean conservation. Using the U.S. president's authority under the Antiquities Act of 1906, he expanded to 200 nautical miles the seaward limits of Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument in Hawaiʻi and the Pacific Remote Islands Marine National Monument around the U.S. island possessions in the Central Pacific. In the Atlantic, Obama created the Northeast Canyons and Seamounts Marine National Monument, the first marine monument in the U.S. exclusive economic zone (EEZ) in the Atlantic.

Frank R. Lautenberg Deep-Sea Coral Protection Area is an offshore marine protected area for deep-sea corals off the coast of the Mid-Atlantic states of the United States.

The marine protected areas of South Africa are in an area of coastline or ocean within the exclusive economic zone (EEZ) of the Republic of South Africa that is protected in terms of specific legislation for the benefit of the environment and the people who live in and use it. An MPA is a place where marine life can thrive under less pressure than unprotected areas. They are like underwater parks, and this healthy environment can benefit neighbouring areas.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fishery cooperative</span>

A fishery cooperative, or fishing co-op, is a cooperative in which the people involved in the fishing industry pool resources, in their certain activities from farming, catching, distribution, and marketing of fish.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sea Fisheries Committee</span>

In England and Wales, a Sea Fisheries Committee, of which there were as many as twelve at one time, was the body responsible for managing a corresponding Sea Fisheries District.

References

  1. ↑ "Marine and Coastal Access Act 2009". Legislation.gov.uk. Retrieved 2015-03-08.
  2. ↑ "Inshore Fisheries and Conservation authorities : Vision and success criteria" (PDF). Southern-ifca.gov.uk. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2015-02-07. Retrieved 2015-03-08.
  3. ↑ "Dialectics of nature: The emergence of policy on the management of commercial fisheries in English European Marine Sites | Request PDF". ResearchGate. Retrieved 2019-01-16.
  4. ↑ "Southern Inshore Fisheries and Conservation Authority : Marine and Coastal Access Act 2009" (PDF). Southern-ifca.gov.uk. Retrieved 2015-03-08.
  5. ↑ report
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.