Governance is off the hook: Managing community fisheries through good environmental governance

What is environmental governance?

In recent years, there has been an increasing global trend of resource exploitation and depletion due to human activities. To overcome the challenges that will arise due to resource scarcities, environmental governance is needed. Environmental governance, according to Lemos and Argrawal (2006) refers to “the set of regulatory processes, mechanisms and organizations through which political actors influence environmental actions and outcomes.” Governance is not necessarily done by the government, but involves the engagement of actors and institutions with one another across various levels of decision-making. Good environmental governance is essential to solving environmental issues, especially in areas around the world where corruption and conflict plague communities. Week Ten of the INDEV 101 speaker series explored environmental governance in development and how it changed improved the livelihoods of the people living in communities facing resource scarcities. The speakers were Bejoy K. Tomas, Graham Epstein and Derek Armitage. Each speaker discussed different case studies in India, Malawi, and Vietnam (respectively), and the role of local fishery governance and their solutions.

Case study 1 India - Bejoy K. Tomas:

Dr. Thomas presented the first case study on Lake Vembanad, shared by fishers on one side and farmers on the other. The government built a barrage across the lake, preventing salt water from entering, thus favouring rice paddy cultivation and farmers’ livelihoods. As a result, the fisheries suffered depleted fish supplies and degraded livelihoods. The conflict was further exacerbated by the fact the higher caste farmers had more political influence. Institutions and actors like the Ramsar Convention, fishers, farmers, other interest groups, and the government negotiated a solution to satisfy their various interests – the barrage would be closed for only two months a year to allow for early paddy sowing without negatively impacting fisheries. This case illustrates the benefit of efficient decision-making processes of good governance in achieving amicable goals.

Case study 2 Malawi - Graham Epstein:

Graham Epstein discussed co-management fishery regulations in Malawi in the second case study. The decline of fish populations has encouraged the government to enforce fishing regulations. From 1970-1990 fishery management in Malawi consisted of government regulations and police involvement. There was limited compliance amongst the fishers in following regulations and violence ensued between fishers and the police. In the 1990’s a new system for managing fisheries was developed, where the fishery departments, fishing communities and locally elected members all shared power. This approach aided stabilizing catch sizes as well as improving the relationship between the government and the fishers.

Case study 3 Vietnam - Derek Armitage:

Tam Giang Lagoon is essential to the lives and livelihoods of the fishing communities located on the shore. Around 300,000 people rely on the lagoon for direct and indirect work. Direct workers are actively fishing while indirect workers make the baskets and nets needed to fish. As of recently, fish stocks have been declining in numbers. This is the result of overexploitation due to fixed fishing, when nets are left in the water for long periods of time and then taken out to collect the fish caught. The solution initiated by external actors was to give property rights to certain groups of people in the community, limit their total allowable catch and the number of nets in the area, and stop illegal fishers. This solution is an example of a bottom-up approach, giving power to the local communities and the actors, making it a small-scale project.

Lessons and insights

The key takeaway from this week’s presentations on governance and development is that there isn’t a one-size-fits-all solution. While social and environmental problems may seem similar in terms of their effects on communities, governance needs to be approached differently in each situation to appropriately assess the needs of communities. In the case studies presented, all the communities were facing similar problems of resource exploitation and livelihood conflicts. However, the proposed solutions vastly differed in terms of management and governance. In addition, the actors and institutions involved in governance need to build trust, relationships and legitimacy with one another and the locals. Governance is an important process in development and when done correctly sets the stage for better policymaking. Without the practice of good environmental governance, solving the complex challenges that arise due to environmental degradation from human activities becomes nearly impossible. As many factors such as climate change continue to exacerbate environmental degradation and resource scarcity around the world, the international community needs to take leadership to ensure good environmental governance is found in all levels of policy-making.