1 March 2012: An International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) study published in the journal Science highlights a new approach, called “balanced harvesting,” that seeks to change the way fisheries are managed by targeting all edible components of the marine environment in proportion to their productivity.

The study, titled “Selective Fishing and Balanced Harvest in Relation to Fisheries and Ecosystem Sustainability,” describes balanced harvesting, which seeks to harness all of the ecosystem’s production capacity and reduce the exploitation of individual populations of fish. This approach is consistent with the ecosystem approach adopted by the UN Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) and the UN Food and Agriculture Organization ( FAO).

According to Serge Garcia, Chair of the Fisheries Expert Group of IUCN’s Commission on Ecosystem Management, who edited the study, this approach seeks to maintain the structure and productivity of the ecosystem as a whole. The paper is based on a comparative study of various types of selectivity using 36 different models of ecosystems. Fishing strategies similar to the balanced harvesting approach have been identified in African inland artisanal fisheries. [IUCN Press Release] [Publication: Selective Fishing and Balanced Harvest in Relation to Fisheries and Ecosystem Sustainability]