Who Should Have a Voice in Management of Local Marine Resources? Some Comments on the Common Property Debates and the Decision of Co-Management Institutions for North Norwegian Fjord Fisheries

Abstract

"Formalized self-management of the cod-fisheries in Lofoten was established by law in 1897, along with some local regulations in the North-Norwegian fjords. In 1959, the fjord regulations were delegated to the regional branches of the Fishers Union.

"Today, it is no longer self-evident that local management should be an exclusive domain of the Fisheries Department and the Fishers Union. Traditional fjord fishing, which used to be the main component of the economical adaptation of coast-sami communities, is in decline. At the same time, the discourse on local management is changing, partly as a result of modernization processes in rural communities, growth of aquaculture and recreational fishing. Salmon farming, and domestication of marine species demands appropriation of common sea-space. Moreoever, ethnic mobilization among the Coast Sami has changed the agenda, as the Sami Parliament claims native rights on behalf of Sami fjord fishers.

"The scientific discourse is also changing, as the Fisheries Research Institute in Tromso has made research on fjord ecosystems a priority. Marine biologists have come to believe that cod and haddock in these areas belong to local spawning stocks, which could be managed separately. Environmental conservation is becoming an issue in local fisheries management. A task force has forwarded a conservation plan for marine areas, in order to protect vital biotopes in fjord-ecosystems. Management is thus becoming increasingly complex, with new lines of conflict and disparate interest-groups. The challenge is how to integrate the concerns of conservation, ethnopoltics, aquaculture, recreation, and commercial fishing. However, lessons from existing management practices should be useful in a process of designing a new co-management system for the fjords."