In The United States
The Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act defines individual transferable quotas (ITQs) as permits to harvest specific quantities of fish of a particular species. Fisheries scientists decide the maximum annual harvest in a certain fishery, accounting for carrying capacity, regeneration rates and future values. This amount is called the total allowable catch (TAC). Under ITQs, participants in a fishery receive rights to a portion of the TAC without charge. Quotas can be fished, bought, sold, or leased. Twenty-eight U.S. fisheries have adopted ITQs as of 2008. Concerns about distributional impacts led to a moratorium on moving other fisheries into the program that lasted from 1996 to 2004.
Starting in January 2010, fishermen in California, Oregon and Washington will operate via tradeable catch shares. Fishers have been discarding bycatch that is not their target, typically killing the individuals. Catch shares allow trawlers to exchange bycatch with each other, benefiting both. Goals of the system include increased productivity, reduced waste, increased fish populations and higher revenues for fishers. More than a dozen other U.S. fisheries are trying out catch shares. Fishery managers say that in Alaska, where catch shares have been in place for several years, fishermen are now getting higher prices for their catch.
Read more about this topic: Individual Fishing Quota
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