New Zealand's Quota Management System: Changes in the Auckland Fishing Community Through the First 14 Years
By Tracy Yandle & Christopher M. Dewees
ABSTRACT
As the earliest (1986) nation to introduce a market-based quota management system (QMS) for most of its marine fisheries, New Zealand presents a unique opportunity to study the influence that this regulatory approach has on the fishing industry and community. The length of time New Zealand's QMS has been in place means that it is possible to conduct a long-term analysis of both the strengths and weaknesses of this regulatory approach. Using a variety of sources, this study examines changes that occurred in the Auckland region's fishing community. This study primarily relies upon data from a panel survey (dating from the policy's inception in 1986-87, 1995, and 1999) of fishermen, combined with analysis of national quota holding data, and documentary sources. The authors use these data sources to examine the claims made both for and against quota management. Their assessment proposes that market-based regulation is neither the panacea nor the curse that some characterizations suggest. Instead, it is a policy tool with an important mixture of strengths and weaknesses that create important and long-lasting changes on the fishing industry, fishing community, and regulatory community associated with it. Nations or fisheries considering quota-based management systems need to carefully set management goals and reflect on the set of changes and challenges they are likely to face if they adopt a ,market-based management approach.
KEYWORDS:Policy, Fisheries Management
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