A Global Environment Facility (GEF) Small Grants Programme (SGP) project has trained lobster fishermen in the Bahamas to stop catching juvenile lobsters and fish sustainably, while educating the community, buyers and restaurants not to buy undersized lobsters.
The project is helping Bahamas lobster fisheries obtain certification by the Marine Stewardship Council.
10 December 2012: The Global Environment Facility (GEF) Small Grants Programme (SGP) has announced funding for a project on the Bahamas’ second largest island, Abaco, to conserve the lobster population by training fishermen in sustainable fishing practices.
The project, implemented by the UN Development Programme (UNDP), conducted a series of workshops from February 2010-April 2012 for 200 local fishermen in sustainable lobster catch practices so they do not catch juvenile lobsters, which impacts the reproduction rate and affects the long-term sustainability of the lobster population. The fishermen also were given lobster gauges to help them gauge acceptable catch size. Spot checks conducted by the project coordinator within the first two months after training revealed full compliance by the fishermen. The project also conducted community education efforts aimed at encouraging the public not to buy undersized lobsters.
The project also facilitated community meetings including fishermen, lobster buyers and restaurants regarding threats facing the lobster populations and how communities can protect juvenile lobsters and promote biodiversity conservation.
These activities are contributing to the Bahamas lobster fishery’s obtaining sustainability certification from the Marine Stewardship Council (MSC).
In addition to the US$34,579 GEF SGP grant, the project obtained US$37,832 in funds and US$14,750 in in-kind co-financing raised by the grantee, Friends of the Environment, from such organizations as WWF-US, RARE, the Bahamas Marine Exporters Association and the North Abaco Fishing Cooperative. [GEF SGP Press Release]