NOAA Fisheries is committed to ecosystem-based management as our most powerful tool to maintain productive, resilient fisheries in a changing climate. This approach considers the entire ecosystem, including humans, to balance tradeoffs between ecological, social, and economic needs.
A new tool, the Ecosystem and Socioeconomic Profile (ESP), takes a significant step toward the application of ecosystem-based fisheries management. It facilitates the integration of ecosystem and socioeconomic information into fisheries management decisions. This rapid communication tool distills information from a variety of sources into a succinct, focused report to help resource managers in their decision-making. Developed in Alaska, it is being adapted and adopted across the nation.
“The ESP gives managers a streamlined version of what affects each fish stock. It provides a means to get a broad range of information—from articles, workshops, citizen science, traditional indigenous knowledge—into one place,” said NOAA Fisheries biologist Kalei Shotwell, Alaska Fisheries Science Center, who initiated the development of the ESP. “It moves us toward ecosystem-based fisheries management. That’s the ultimate goal.”
The ESP was first conceived in 2014, building on NOAA Fisheries’ rich history of identifying ecosystem and socioeconomic pressures since the 1990s.
“We had a lot of information at the large marine ecosystems level. But we don’t manage fish at that level. There was a communication gap between conducting research and getting the information into management advice for individual fish stocks,” said Shotwell. “We developed the ESP to fill that gap.”
The first ESP case study using Alaska sablefish was completed in 2017. Over the next several years, it was developed and refined through the North Pacific Fisheries Management Council review process and using recommendations from the 2018 NOAA Fisheries’ Next Generation Stock Assessment Improvement Plan.
The ESP integrates ecosystem and socioeconomic factors into the stock assessment process through a four-step process:
Step 1: Focus on Ecosystem and Socioeconomic Priorities
Step 2: Synthesize Ecosystem and Socioeconomic Vulnerabilities
Step 3: Analyze Ecosystem and Socioeconomic Indicators
Step 4: Communicate Ecosystem and Socioeconomic Considerations
Among the benefits of the ESP is that it provides a way to include information from a variety of sources, including fishermen and communities.
“Now we have a consistent way to incorporate public comment and skipper surveys. In the future, we hope to meet with Alaska Native groups that may want to provide information on what stocks are important to them, and what indicators may be helpful to monitor,” Shotwell said. “The ESP provides an avenue for underrepresented stakeholders to communicate their needs. It’s making people’s voices heard.”