A model-based evaluation of active management of recreational fishing effort

Recreational fisheries are increasingly faced with the dilemma of too many people chasing too few fish. Active management of angler effort promises relief from the pressures of overcrowding and declines in angling quality. In this paper, we develop a regional-scale model of recreational fishery dynamics to evaluate how active effort management policies might affect the cumulative value taken over many fisheries. The model incorporates linear increases in satisfaction per angler-day with increases in catch rate to represent demand, declines in catch rate with increasing effort to represent supply limitations, and angler movement among open-access fisheries to represent the presence of uncontrolled, open-access alternatives to effort-managed fisheries. The management control variables were the proportion of fisheries managed under effort control (P-m) and the proportion of open-access effort allowed on managed lakes (P-e). Unmanaged lakes remained open access. Policies that maximized total regional value favored effort management for all combinations of P-m and P-e. The total increases in value over open-access conditions were greatest under conditions of high demand and low effort movement. When effort movement and demand for improved quality were both high, a large proportion (>50%) of fisheries needed to be included under effort control to offset the value losses on open-access fisheries. Because effort management offers promise for creating above-average fishing opportunities, managers should carefully consider regional-scale impacts and the potential demand for high-quality, low-effort angling opportunities.