1Department of Fisheries, Western Australia. PO Box 20, Hillarys WA, 6920. Email: daniel.gaughan@fishs.wa.gov.au
2CSIRO Marine and Atmospheric Research, GPO Box 1538, Hobart, Tasmania 7001. Email: Jeffrey.Dambacher@csiro.au
The management of fishing must be undertaken within the context of the ecosystem(s) that support the exploited stocks, a management approach termed Ecosystem-Based Fisheries Management (EBFM). The WA Department of Fisheries (DoF) recognizes the inherent complexity in attempting to implement an EBFM system, including the need to consider a much wider range of processes, issues and data than is required for singe-stock management. Research on the implementation of EBFM is being undertaken in a project funded by the WA Marine Science Institution (WAMSI). This project aims to (1) develop mechanisms and processes for integrating EBFM into “mainstream” fisheries management, including the WA Government’s Integrated Fisheries Management (IFM) initiative, and (2) to source, identify and integrate appropriate supporting research. It is expected that EBFM will eventually subsume both traditional fisheries management and IFM. Ultimately, this project will provide stakeholders, including the broader WA community, with a much improved understanding of what EBFM means and how it could be achieved, which will engender within the WA community a greater understanding of sustainable management of marine ecosystems. This presentation provides an overview of how DoF and partners are progressing the implementation of EBFM.
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