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1.
《Marine Policy》2014
Interactions between seals and the fishing industry are an on-going problem in Ireland and indeed globally across the range of most seal species. These interactions occur at both the operational (seal damage to catches and fishing gear) and biological (competition for shared resources) level. With declines in fish stocks there has been increased interest in the extent of competition for resources between commercial fisheries and seals. High levels of seal damage perceived by the fishing industry has led to frequent calls for seal culls, highlighting the significance of the problem. However, the scale of interaction between seals and commercial fishing and aquaculture in Ireland heretofore remained unclear. A comprehensive review of existing data, augmented with data from key stakeholders on the current state of play is presented to provide a realistic and representative account of the situation. This suggests that seal interactions with commercial fisheries in Ireland are most significant in inshore (<12 nautical miles from shore) static-net (or passive) fisheries (e.g. gill/tangle nets) and have increased following the driftnet ban in 2006, which suggests displacement of seal interactions from salmon to other fisheries. The industry highlighted pollack, angler fish, cod, and turbot fisheries as the main inshore fisheries currently impacted by operational damage to gear and catch by seals. Seal damage to line-caught salmon continues, with industry feedback suggesting large geographical variation in the range of damage levels reported. Salmon farming installations are also increasingly being targeted by seals, with significant losses due to seal depredation being reported. In the absence of robust data on seal depredation, the extent to which changes in fishing gear and practices have reduced damage levels, or resulted in displacement of seal foraging effort, is unknown. Recommendations are made to suggest how research efforts should be focused to address critical data gaps identified in the study. 相似文献
2.
Genetic stock identification studies have been widely applied to Pacific salmon species to estimate stock composition of complex mixed-stock fisheries. In a September-October 2004 survey, 739 chum salmon (Oncorhynchus keta) specimens were collected from 23 stations in the western Bering Sea. We determined the genetic stock composition of immature chum salmon based on the previous mitochondria DNA baseline. Each regional estimate was computed based on the conditional maximum likelihood method using 1,000 bootstrap resampling and then pooled to the major regional groups: Korea - Japan - Primorie (KJP) / Russia (RU) / Northwest Alaska (NWA) / Alaska Peninsula - Southcentral Alaska - Southeast Alaska - British Columbia - Washington (ONA). The stock composition of immature chum salmon in the western Bering Sea was a mix of 0.424 KJP, 0.421 RU, 0.116 NWA, and 0.039 ONA stocks. During the study period, the contribution of Asian chum salmon stocks gradually changed from RU to KJP stock. In addition, North American populations from NWA and ONA were small but present near the vicinity of the Russian coast and the Commander Islands, suggesting that the study areas in the western Bering Sea were an important migration route for Pacific chum salmon originating both from Asia and North America during the months of September and October. These results make it possible to better understand the chum salmon stock composition of the mixed-stock fisheries in the western Bering Sea and the stock-specific distribution pattern of chum salmon on the high-seas. 相似文献
3.
《Marine Policy》2014
Korea's coastal and offshore fisheries have experienced reduction in their catch in the early 2000. The amount of catch from coastal and offshore fisheries dropped from 1.7 million tons in 1986 to 1 million tons in 2004. To address such catch reduction, fish stock enhancement programs have been constantly developed and implemented. However, as fish stocks have been estimated to decrease since 2000 in spite of various management measures, the Korean Government genuinely acknowledges the necessity to enhance fisheries productivity through the recovery of depleted fish stocks. Based on such acknowledgement, a fish stock rebuilding plan (FSRP) combined with conventional fish stock enhancement programs was established in 2005. For stocks which have shown drastic decrease, a FSRP was set up and promoted. So far, 10 FSRPs have been established and operated, and plan is being made to expand them to 20 species by 2012. The result of pilot projects shows that stocks have been increasing after the introduction of FSRPs. For instance, the catch per unit effort (CPUE) of sandfish in the East Sea has increased from 0.44 in 2005 to 0.78 in 2011. Consequently, fishing income has increased by 15%. The key lessons learned during the implementation of FSRP are: the causes for the decrease of stock vary and are complicated and it is necessary to adjust and eliminate some conventional policies that could have unforeseen negative impacts on fish stocks. The FSRP-based fisheries management policy in Korea carries great significance, for it has changed the focus of policy from simply maintaining the status quo to stock recovery and it allows relevant stakeholders to get actively involved in the procedures of establishing and promoting the plan, leading to effective implementation of the plan. The current FSRP is operated with species, but if it can be gradually expanded to encompass the whole ecosystem, it will greatly contribute to more effective management and fish stock recovery for all species in offshore and coastal waters surrounding Korea. 相似文献
4.
The Moray Firth Seal Management Plan (MFSMP) was introduced in Scotland in 2005 as a pilot for resolving conflict between Atlantic salmon fisheries and conservation imperatives for protected harbour and grey seals. This adaptive co-management model is now being applied nationally through the Marine (Scotland) Act (2010). However, no information exists on salmon fishery stakeholders’ perceptions of seal predation impacts and related costs, which could influence the success of the MFSMP and other similar initiatives. In 2006 a questionnaire survey of the 95 salmon rod fisheries in seven major Moray Firth rivers was undertaken, and all 20 active salmon netting stations in the Firth. Forty-five fishery owners, 39 ghillies, 120 anglers and 11 netsmen (representing 17 netting stations) responded. The majority (81%) believed that seals had a significant or moderate impact on stocks and catches, 77% believed that all seals were responsible and 47% supported seal culling. Seals were sighted by 38% of rod fisheries, and 18% lost angler days from seal interference. Overall, 0.2% of total reported angler days were lost annually. The estimated direct cost of seal interference for responding rod fisheries was £14,960 annum−1, and losses of catches and damage to nets was £16,500 annum−1 for responding netsmen. Stakeholders’ perceptions were largely inconsistent with their low direct costs and the aims of the MFSMP. Possible reasons for this are discussed, and implications for the governance of future adaptive co-management initiatives for seal-fishery conflict. 相似文献
5.
Designing and implementing long-term management plans is difficult both because of the complexity of the fisheries system, and the behaviour of humans. We compared four alternative management plans for the Baltic salmon stocks through approaching experts who interpreted and expressed the views of different stakeholder groups on the options. The focus of the study was on stakeholders’ commitment to the alternative management plans. Committing enhances the probability of achieving the ultimate objective of a plan, while if stakeholders do not commit, the effects of the plan may be less predictable. Thus commitment is an important part of implementation uncertainty in fisheries management. We present how we coupled qualitative analysis with probabilistic Bayesian networks in analysing expert knowledge related to alternative long term management plans in terms of group commitment. Using a Bayesian net provides potential for creating a holistic picture of a fishery by combining the data describing fishers’ commitment with biological data regarding fish stock dynamics and with economic data analyzing economically sound fisheries management. 相似文献
6.
许氏平鲉4 个野生群体遗传多样性微卫星分析 总被引：2，自引：0，他引：2
利用18对微卫星引物分析了荣成湾群体1、荣成湾群体2、即墨群体和龙口群体共4个许氏平鲉(Sebastes schlegeli)野生群体的遗传多样性。结果表明:4个群体的平均有效等位基因数分别为3.1、2.7、2.8和2.7,平均期望杂合度分别为0.590、0.540、0.552和0.491,平均多态信息含量分别为0.577、0.495、0.538和0.528。4个许氏平鲉群体均表现出较高的遗传多样性水平,但也都存在杂合子缺失现象。Χ2检验显示,4个群体中大部分微卫星位点偏离Hardy-Weinberg平衡(P<0.05)。群体间Fst值为0.04,说明遗传变异主要存在于群体内,群体间的遗传分化程度较低。该研究结果将为许氏平鲉种质资源保护和合理利用以及人工增殖提供理论参考。 相似文献
7.
《Marine Policy》2017
Integrated Multi-Trophic Aquaculture (IMTA) has been put forward as a potential sustainable alternative to single fin fish species aquaculture. In IMTA, several species are combined in the production process. Integrating species has a conceivable dual advantage; the environmental impact can be lowered through nutrient cycling and from an economic perspective there is potential for increased efficiency, product diversification and a higher willingness to pay for more environmentally friendly produced salmon. This paper presents the results from a choice experiment which examines whether the Irish public is willing to pay a premium for “sustainably produced” farmed salmon from an IMTA process. Uniquely, an ecolabel was used in the design, based on familiar energy rating labels, to communicate the environmental pressure of fish farming to respondents. The experiment demonstrates that the Irish public has a willingness to pay a price premium for sustainability in salmon farming and for locally produced salmon. 相似文献
8.
石鲽野生群体和养殖群体遗传多样性的ISSR分析 总被引：2，自引：0，他引：2
采用简单序列重复区间(ISSR)技术,对石鲽的3个野生群体——青岛群体(QD)、威海群体(WH)、莱州群体(LZ)和一个养殖群体(YZ)进行了遗传多样性研究.结果表明,从60个ISSR引物中筛选出8个ISSR引物对四个群体的基因组DNA进行扩增,共获得183个重复性好且5谱清晰的位点,4个群体的多态位点比例为48.1%~50.8%,Shannon多样性值为15.68~18.53,群体内个体间遗传相似度为0.9053~0.9189,群体间的遗传距离为0.0055~0.0173.同其他鱼类相比,石鲽群体的遗传多样性水平较低.用UPGMA方法构建的群体进化树显示,WH群体和LZ群体遗传距离最近,首先聚在一起,两者然后与YZ群体聚类,最后与QD群体相聚.利用基因分化系数进行遗传变异来源估算,结果表明石鲽群体96.47%的遗传变异来源于群体内,群体间的遗传变异仅占3.53%,不同群体间的遗传相似度较大. 相似文献
9.
采用随机扩增多态性DNA技术,对花鲈(Lateolabrax japonicus)皮肤溃疡病抗性和敏感两个群体的遗传多样性进行了研究.从100个10 bp随机引物中筛选出25个随机引物,在两个群体中共扩增了326个位点,抗性群体多态住点比率为44.24%,遗传变异度为0.123 7,Shannon多样性值为0.1149,分别比敏感群体高3.87%,5.82%和2.68%,表明花鲈抗病群体比敏感群体具有更丰富的遗传多样性.25条随机引物中,7条引物在两群体中的扩增结果存在差异,其中S11,S15,S4,S414,S416,S9在抗性群体的扩增结果比敏感群体多1个多态住点,S52多2个多态位点.在这8个特异多态位点中,S52-1,S4-1,S414-6,S9-2在敏感群体中全部出现,呈单态性;S15-5,S11-6,S416-6,S52-5只在抗性群体中出现,出现频率分别为38.5%,30.8%,23.1%和23.1%.说明这8个位点在两群体中存在较大的差异.研究表明,花鲈皮肤溃疡病在遗传上是比较复杂的,并不是简单地与某个遗传标记有关,可能与多个遗传因素相关. 相似文献
10.
《Journal of Sea Research》2004,51(3-4):191-197
As a preliminary investigation into the genetic structure of Irish Sea plaice we genotyped samples of juvenile plaice from six inshore areas within the Irish Sea across eight microsatellite loci and compared them with fish from two sites from the Dutch Wadden Sea (North Sea stocks). Genetic variability in all samples was generally low for that typically observed at microsatellite loci. The number of alleles per locus varied between two and nine (average 5.5) and the observed heterozygosity ranged from 0.080 up to a maximum of 0.909 (average 0.382). Few significant heterozygote deficits were observed, even when the data set was pooled. The majority (98%) of genetic variation present was within, rather than between, populations. None of the pairwise comparisons of population differentiation (FST) were significant (P>0.05) and a Bayesian analysis of population structure provided no evidence for a partitioning of the samples. Since juveniles arriving at nursery grounds in the Irish Sea are not distinct, it is likely that adult plaice form a single stock (perhaps with some weak differentiation). However, if plaice eggs and larvae do not disperse as predicted by a particle tracking model, then it is possible that the juveniles represent a mixture of several distinct stocks. Further work is therefore required to determine whether the phenotypic variation observed between female plaice from the eastern and western Irish Sea is the product of reproductive isolation or of the environment. 相似文献
11.
The hypothesis that recruitment variation in flatfishes should be most variable at the northern edge of the species range, least near the centre of the range, and intermediate near the southern limit was tested using stock and recruitment data generated from sequential population analysis for several different flatfish stocks involving four species (plaice Pleuronectes platessa, sole Solea vulgaris from the eastern Atlantic, American plaice Hippoglossoides platessoides, and yellowtail flounder Limanda ferruginae from the western Atlantic). Several groundfish species have been found to conform to this so-called species range hypothesis with the suggestion that density-independent processes predominate at the edges of the distributional range and density-dependent processes dominate in the centre of the range. Our results were generally inconsistent with the hypothesis: the coefficient of variation (CV) of recruitment for plaice in the eastern Atlantic was independent of latitude, the CV of recruitment for sole exhibited a dome-shaped relationship with latitude with the highest CVs occurring at the mid-point of the range, and the CV of recruitment for the western Atlantic stocks exhibited a monotonic decrease with latitude. We extended our latitudinal analyses by assessing both the degree of dependency of recruitment on spawning stock biomass and the spatial and temporal scales of variability in recruitment and pre-recruit survival for the eastern Atlantic stocks. In general our analysis revealed no evidence of a strong stock and recruitment relationship for any of the stocks examined, and previously published analyses revealed no such patterns with latitude. Analysis of both de-trended recruitment and pre-recruit survival time series over the species ranges of sole and plaice revealed strong positive correlations among adjacent stocks and inverse correlations among stocks at the extremes of the range. Recruitment variation in the flatfish stocks examined appears to be dominated by density-independent factors, operating at a local scale, on the egg and larval stages. 相似文献
12.
西施舌3 个自然群体杂合性的研究 总被引：1，自引：0，他引：1
采用聚丙烯酰胺凝胶电泳技术,对广西北海、福建漳港和江苏启东3个西施舌(Coelomactra antiquata (Spengler))自然群体杂合性进行了研究.共检测分析了7个酶,获得12个位点,25个等位基因.其中4个位点是多态的,分别是Sod-1、Mdh-1、Est-1、Est-3,这些位点分别有1～7个等位基因.结果表明,福建漳港群体的Sod-1和Est-1位点、广西北海群体的勋Sod-1位点符合Hardy-weinberg平衡(P>0.05);江苏启东群体的多态位点中所有位点、福建漳港群体的Mdh-1、Est-3位点,广西北海群体的Mdh-1、Est-1、Est-3位点均非常显著偏离Hardy-weinberg平衡(P<0.01).另外,除了江苏启东和福建漳港群体的Est-1位点表现出杂合子缺失(F>0)外,各群体中每个位点均表现出杂合子过量(F<0).结合各群体中每个多态位点的观察杂合度和期望杂合度,认为中国东南沿海西施舌的种质资源状况良好. 相似文献
13.
In 1994, a directed fishing moratorium was declared for Grand Bank American plaice (Hippoglossoides platessoides) and yellowtail flounder (Limanda ferruginea) stocks because both stocks showed severe declines in abundance from heavy exploitation during the mid 1980s and early 1990s. Four years later, the fishery for yellowtail re-opened while the plaice stock has shown little recovery and the moratorium is still in effect. To assess the possible causes of the differences in recovery between species, we examined the spatial structure and environmental characteristics of the continental shelf nursery habitats of plaice and yellowtail, and their relationship to recruitment variability and overall population size. Depth plays a major influential role determining the spatial pattern and the abundance of juveniles of both species and in the case of plaice the spatial structure of the adult population also determines the amount of nursery area utilised by juveniles. Recruitment variability was higher in plaice than in yellowtail. We found year class synchrony in both species indicating that common environmental conditions and/or biological processes are affecting recruitment in a similar manner. Density-dependent regulation appears to be more severe in yellowtail and this should contribute to a more stable population when compared to plaice. These results are discussed in terms of resiliency of both stocks to over-exploitation. 相似文献
14.
Sardine Sardinops sagax distributed off the west and south coasts of South Africa have traditionally been assumed to comprise a single well-mixed stock for assessment and management purposes. New research, however, lends weight to the possibility of two stocks in this region. A precautionary management approach thus needs to consider the impact of management decisions on the hypothesised two individual stocks as well as on the resource as a whole. As a first step in this process, Bayesian assessments of South African sardine are presented, which compare results for the traditional single-stock hypothesis with those that follow from a new two-mixing-stock hypothesis. Recruits from the west stock are assumed to move to and remain part of the south stock in annual pulses of varying size. This movement is estimated to be appreciable, and to take place from a substantially more productive west stock to the south stock. This immigration makes a greater contribution to the south-stock biomass than do years of above-average south-stock recruitment. Importantly, this two-mixing-stock hypothesis is shown to be consistent with the data available. Further alternative sardine stock-structure hypotheses suggested by the most recent data are discussed. 相似文献
15.
《African Journal of Marine Science》2013,35(3):347-367
Management of fisheries that exploit mixed-stock populations relies on assumptions made concerning stock structure and mixing in different areas. To address the problems of accounting for uncertainty when formulating scientific advice for the management of highly migratory fish stocks, management decisions need to be based upon assessment models that represent plausible alternative hypotheses for stock structure and migration patterns of the exploited populations. We present a multi-stock, multi-fleet, multi-area, seasonally structured Bayesian state-space model in which different stocks spawn in spatially different areas and the mixing of these stocks is explicitly accounted for in the absence of sufficient tagging data with which to estimate migration rates. The model is applied to the Northeast Atlantic mackerel Scomber scombrus population, accounting for the annual spawning-feeding-overwintering migration patterns of the three spawning components, together with uncertainty in the extent to which the southern component migrates north to feed and overwinter, and consequently the extent to which it mixes with the other components and is subject to exploitation. The model allows the effect of exploitation on the individual components to be assessed, and the results suggest that the fishing mortality of southern spawning adults was insensitive to the extent to which they migrated north. 相似文献
16.
Theoretical aspects of cap-rock and fault seals for single- and two-phase hydrocarbon columns 总被引：6，自引：0，他引：6
Cap-rock seals can be divided genetically into those that fail by capillary leakage (membrane seals) and those whose capillary entry pressures are so high that seal failure preferentially occurs by fracturing and/or wedging open of faults (hydraulic seals). A given membrane seal can trap a larger oil column than gas column at shallow depths, but below a critical depth (interval), gas is more easily sealed than oil. This critical depth increases with lower API gravity, lower oil GOR and overpressured conditions (for the gas phase). These observations arise from a series of modelling studies of membrane sealing and can be conveniently represented using pressure/ depth (P/D) profiles through sealed hydrocarbon columns. P/D diagrams have been applied to the more complex situation of the membrane sealing of a gas cap underlain by an oil rim; at seal capacity, such a two-phase column will be always greater than if only oil or gas occurs below the seal.These conclusions contrast with those for hydraulic seals where the seal capacity to oil always exceeds that for gas. Moreover, a trapped two-phase column, at hydraulic seal capacity will be less than the maximum-allowed oil-only column, but more than the maximum gas-only column. Unlike membrane seals, hydraulic seal capacity should be directly related to cap-rock thickness, in addition to the magnitude of the minimum effective stress in the sealing layer and the degree of overpressure development in the sequence as a whole.Fault-related seals are effectively analogous to membrane cap-rocks which have been tilted to the angle of the fault plane. Consequently, all of the above conclusions derived for membrane cap-rocks apply to both sealing faults sensu stricto (fault plane itself seals) and juxtaposition faults (hydrocarbon trapped laterally against a juxtaposed sealing unit). The maximum-allowed two-phase column trapped by a sealing fault is greater than for equivalent oil-only and gas-only columns, but less than that predicted for a horizontal membrane cap-rock under similar conditions. Where a two-phase column is present on both sides of a sealing fault (which is at two-phase seal capacity), a deeper oil/water contact (OWC) in one fault block is associated with a deeper gas/oil contact (GOC) compared with the adjacent fault block. If the fault seal is discontinuous in the gas leg, however, the deeper OWC is accompanied by a shallower GOC, whereas a break in the fault seal in the oil leg results in a common OWC in both fault blocks, even though separate GOC's exist. Schematic P/D profiles are provided for each of the above situations from which a series of fundamental equations governing single- and two-phase cap-rock and fault seal capacities can be derived. These relationships may have significant implications for exploration prospect appraisal exercises where more meaningful estimates of differential seal capacities can be made.The membrane sealing theory developed herein assumes that all reservoirs and seals are water-wet and no hydrodynamic flow exists. The conclusions on membrane seal capacity place constraints on the migration efficiency of gas along low-permeabiligy paths at depth where fracturing, wedging open of faults and/or diffusion process may be more important. Contrary to previous assertions, it is speculated that leakage of hydrocarbons through membrane seals occurs in distinct pulses such that the seal is at or near the theoretically calculated seal capacity, once this has been initially attained.Finally, the developed seal theory and P/D profile concepts are applied to a series of development geological problems including the effects of differential depletion, and degree of aquifer support, on sealing fault leakage, and the evaluation of barriers to vertical cross-flow using RFT profiles through depleted reservoirs. It is shown that imbibition processes and dynamic effects related to active cross-flow across such barriers often preclude quantitative analysis and solution of these problems for which simulation studies are usually required. 相似文献
17.
JN Kathena A Kokkalis MW Pedersen JE Beyer UH Thygesen 《African Journal of Marine Science》2018,40(3):293-302
There is global interest in providing scientific advice on optimal harvesting of all commercially exploited fish stocks. Nevertheless, many commercially important stocks lack analytical assessments. Therefore, we evaluate a data-moderate stock assessment method: the stochastic surplus production model in continuous time (SPiCT). The method was applied to two Namibian stocks: (i) the data-rich Cape monkfish Lophius vomerinus, where results are compared to a new data-rich assessment using a state–space assessment model (SAM); and (ii) the data-moderate west coast sole Austroglossus microlepis, which is an important bycatch species in the Cape monkfish fishery, but currently unassessed. The information available to the data-moderate assessment is total commercial catch, commercial catch per unit effort (CPUE), and survey CPUE. SPiCT and SAM gave largely consistent estimates of relative fishing mortality (F/FMSY) and relative exploitable biomass (B/BMSY) for the Cape monkfish stock, although with some discrepancies. Differences in the biomass estimates between the two assessments suggest that further investigation is required to understand the cause, and that some caution is necessary when considering the biomass of the stock. SPiCT shows that the west coast sole may be overexploited, although the confidence bounds were too wide for a firm conclusion. Similarity in the estimates of F/FMSY for Cape monkfish in recent years, using SPiCT relative to SAM, likewise indicates the suitability of SPiCT for managing west coast sole. 相似文献
18.
We describe a multi‐stock, length‐based Bayesian assessment model for New Zealand spiny lobster (Jasus edwardsii) fisheries. This model allows simultaneous modelling of two or more stocks with a mixture of common and stock‐specific parameters: recruitment is always stock‐specific, but any other parameter can be specified as either common or stock‐specific. Common parameters are estimated from a wider base than they would be in a single‐stock model. The model's time step is flexible and can be changed during the period being modelled to accommodate better data quality in recent data. Other options include the capacity to estimate movements among stocks, allow density‐dependent growth, and choose among likelihood functions for the various data sets, between finite and instantaneous fishing dynamics and between two forms of selectivity curve. 相似文献
19.
Existence of a deep subtidal stock of drifting Ulva in relation to intertidal algal mat developments
Blooms of drifting green algae often develop in shallow coastal zones that receive significant nutrient inputs. Each spring and summer, some fifty bays and coves in Brittany (France) are affected in this way. Until now, in this region, only the algae present in the surf zone or stranded ashore, constituting an intertidal stock, have been taken into account. Another stock of algae, which was subtidal and of the same species (Ulva spp.), was found in the Bay of Douarnenez, one of the ten areas most affected by these algal blooms. This subtidal Ulva stock was located beyond the surf zone, at depths reaching 15 m. It was about the same size as the intertidal stock, viz., a few thousand tons on average. Subtidal Ulva stocks were generally found lying on the sandy bottom in a distribution showing no particular pattern. Biomass ranged from almost zero to 1.547 kg m−2 of fresh and spun-dried algae. However, at depths from 3 to 7 m they were often arranged in strips a few dm wide, due to the swell's effect. The bottom conditions of temperature, salinity, irradiance and dissolved inorganic nitrogen measured during spring and summer are suitable for the growth of Ulva in the subtidal zone. Both intertidal and subtidal drifting Ulva stocks are mobile and capable of exchanging material. In spring, the intertidal stock's inoculum is likely to come from the subtidal. Later in the season, the subtidal stock could be supplied, at least partially, by the intertidal. 相似文献
20.
The roots of the Canadian harp seal hunt can be traced to the 16th Century. But in the mid-20th century, opposition to the commercial hunt became widespread after television images of seal pups being killed with clubs on the pack ice off the coast of Newfoundland were broadcast around the world. International conservation groups, animal welfare groups, animal rights groups, and foreign governments have been calling for the Canadian government to end the commercial seal hunt on the grounds that it is inhumane and that harvest levels are unsustainable. The Canadian government defends the traditional practices of hunting harp seals, argues that seal pelts are an important source of income for sealers, and insists that the killing methods are humane and that harvest levels are sustainable. Emotions run high on both sides of the debate. The purpose of this paper is to evaluate whether or not there is a purely economic argument for ending Canada's commercial seal hunt. The paper finds that the benefits of ending the commercial hunt exceed the costs, but not unequivocally. However, the paper argues there should be a higher criterion—the Pareto criterion—for ending the commercial hunt; that is the hunt should end only if winners compensate the losers. The paper goes on to argue that an effective way to satisfy this criterion is to introduce a system of individual transferable quotas (ITQs) and let the market reveal the value of the commercial seal hunt. In addition to many other advantages such as improving the safety and efficiency of the hunt, the ITQ market could provide a mechanism by which those willing to pay to end the hunt could do so directly to sealers thereby ensuring that the hunt is scaled back or ultimately ended only when it is economically efficient and unambiguously welfare-improving. 相似文献