Assessment of a fisheries legal framework for potential development of an ecosystem approach to fisheries management in large rivers

Most small-scale fisheries of large floodplain rivers are still managed under conventional top-down regulations that limit the application of an ecosystem approach to fisheries (EAF) due to inappropriate legal frameworks. Using the Parana-Paraguay River fisheries (Argentina) as an example, this study examines the extent to which existing provincial legislations can be prepared for the adoption of an EAF. An Ecosystem Fishing Legal Approach (EFLA) framework is proposed based on different criteria across an environmental-ecological, fishing, social, economic and institutional template. Policy Component Scores (PCS) and an Integrated Policy Legal Index (IPLI) were applied to assess the degree of compliance by current provincial legislations to EAF implementation. Cluster analysis was used to recognise the potential for articulating a legal framework at a basin scale. The EFLA framework, which provided an accurate picture of how provinces were poorly prepared to adopt an EAF for the Paraguay-Parana fisheries, and represents a suitable tool that can be adapted and extended to other basins around the world.