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Report 4 of 5:
A
Long Haul - Indonesia
Introduction
The management of inland fisheries based on the seasonal flood plains of rivers was the subject of a major research project undertaken between 1997 and 2000. The objective of the study was to identify the various factors influencing the sustainable use of ‘reserves’ so that management guidelines could be recommended. The purpose of the guidelines was to develop ways to enhance the fish stocks for the economic benefit of the fishing communities. While a ‘reserve’ is usually thought of as an area free from exploitation – usually for nature conservation purposes - the project used the concept of a ‘harvest reserve’ which could be managed, using appropriate regulations, in a way which allowed fishing to take place while the natural fish stocks were sustained or increased. Throughout the project, the priority was to maximise the benefit to fishing communities.
The project was undertaken by collaborators from MRAG Ltd (UK), the Central Research Institute for Fisheries, Indonesia (CRIFI) and three provincial offices of the Indonesian Fisheries Extension Service – Dinas Perikanan – in Kalimantan (Kalbar), Jambi and South Sumatra (Sumsel). Funding for the project was provided by the Fisheries Management Science Programme (FMSP) of the UK Department For International Development (DFID).
A short series of Regional Reserve Surveys were carried out by teams from CRIFI and MRAG. Since the project recognised that the successful operation of reserves must take into account several inter-related factors, the teams were made up of biologists, economists and sociologists/institutional analysts. The teams were supported by fisheries officers with local experience from Dinas Perekanan. The surveys looked at a selection of existing reserves to collect information on the type of fishery (river, lake etc.), who managed the reserve and the rules they used.
© Management guidelines for Asian floodplain river fisheries
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The information collected was used to help to select and classify a range of reserve types for more detailed study, grouping the reserves in relation to:
- the catchment position (upland or floodplain)
- the intended beneficiaries (local or catchment)
- habitat type (river section or lake)
- management agencies (community or government)
- management regulations
These surveys also provided an opportunity to involve all the local people with an interest in the fisheries at an early stage.
The floodplain environment
Floodplains do not exist in isolation but as part of a much larger river system and the fish catches depend on environmental factors both in the local flood area and in the whole river catchment area. In order for the fish yields to be high, there must be plentiful supplies of clean water and nutrients from upstream. Attempts at flood control can have serious effects on the floodplain environment.
Floodplain rivers offer a variety of habitat types – from pools and fast flowing streams to virtually still water over flooded grassland and forest. The seasonal flooding provides sheltered spawning grounds and plenty of hiding places for the young fish in the submerged vegetation and favours those fish species which reproduce freely and grow quickly to maturity. The main rivers, however, tend to offer few of these benefits and are used mainly by the fish in the dry season and as a means of migration. The floodplains, therefore, tend to provide higher yields to the fishing communities. Large floods generate large numbers of fish due to the greater opportunities for feeding and growth. Many floodplain fish have adapted to the annual cycle by spawning at the beginning of the flood so that their newly hatched young are able to take full advantage of the abundance of food.
During the dry season, the flood waters slowly drain away from the land and the fish can be trapped in pools left in hollows. Some species of fish, known as ‘white fish’, are unable to survive in these pools as the water quality deteriorates and they are forced to return to the main river. Other species known as ‘black fish’, are adapted to survive in poor quality water with low oxygen levels, some of them even having developed an ability to breath air at the surface.
Some of the pools may remain until the next flood the dry season or may dry out completely, leaving the fish stranded and easily collected. These pools, and the streams draining the plain to the river, hold the greatest concentration of fish and are well known to local fishers, giving rise to a high demand for fishing rights in these locations. However, excessive exploitation at the end of the flood season, when the fish are at their most vulnerable, can lead to loss of breeding stock and a shortage of fish in the following season. The involvement of the local fishing community in the management of the river system is, therefore, crucial to the sustainability of the fishery.
Fisheries management
Rules issued at a government level can be useful in managing the use of fisheries to ensure that the long-term interests of the fishers are sustained – for example, bans on the taking of breeding stock or the use of poison or electricity in fishing will always be beneficial. Governments, however, frequently have difficulty in monitoring and enforcing their fisheries regulations. Also, national rules cannot be expected to cover all the varied conditions in floodplain fisheries and the rules and regulations used at a local level have to fit the ecological, economic and other considerations.
Similarly, local rules cannot be decided from outside as there is still not enough scientific understanding of the complex relationships between all the factors affecting floodplain fisheries. Locally appropriate rules are best identified on the basis of all the information available on the particular area’s waterbodies and the local community is often the best source of such information. The participation of a local community in the development of fishery management provides a much better chance of the rules being appropriate to local circumstances. It also increases the sense of ownership and improves the likelihood that the rules will be monitored and enforced by the fishery users themselves. There are many examples of successful traditional management systems for fisheries which are based entirely on the principles of appropriate management and community participation. Governments, however, can play an important role in supporting and promoting such management systems.
Co-management of fisheries
Different types of community-based fishery management systems can be built on different degrees of participation of the fishers in the planning, implementation, monitoring and enforcement of the management scheme. Depending on the social and biological conditions in the fishery, the degree of participation can range from dictatorial management by government, with little local input, to self-management that involves local control over the fishery, with little government input. In between, there is a wide range of possibilities. The strength and quality of the relationships between individuals; between individuals and their communities; between communities in a single fishery; and between citizens and the state; all must be used to decide what types of participation might be possible.
A community-based approach giving fishermen the responsibility to manage their own resources is an arrangement with a long tradition in Indonesia, dating back at least to the early days of Dutch colonial rule. In many cases, such systems have continued with the active encouragement of the local government, providing a strong foundation for the development of fisheries co-management.
In addition, there is a long-established tradition in Indonesia for leaders to make decisions through a process of discussion until a level of unanimity is achieved. The intention is to arrive at a solution in a way which ensures that everyone involved is willing to accept the outcome. This is achieved either by adjusting the proposal or convincing the reluctant members of the benefits. This process can be applied to issues relating to fisheries management and decisions made in this way can become part of official fisheries regulations.
A combination of government and community management can ensure that all the fishing communities accept and abide by the national regulations as well as the local ones, offering the possibility of long-term sustainability in the fishery as a source of livelihood.
The rules used to control fishing with the intention of preserving the fish stocks in the long-term will vary considerably from one location to another and depend entirely on local circumstances. Water bodies licensed for fishing may be auctioned but there may also be restrictions on who is allowed to bid, with preference sometimes given to villagers. Some types of fishing gear may be restricted or banned, either completely or at certain times of the year, to ensure that too many fish are not taken.
If a community depends mainly on ‘black fish’, it may not bother to set rules which preserve ‘whitefish’ with a strong instinct to migrate and which only stay in their local water during the spawning season. There are also other, very powerful social and economic factors which have to be taken into account along with those which relate directly to the fish themselves. All these important elements are well understood at the community level and the rules which are evolved to control each fishery meet local needs - if the management system is working well.
The information used in the preparation of this leaflet was drawn from the following reports:
Selection Criteria and Co-Management Guidelines for Harvest Reserves in Tropical River Fisheries.
Regional Reserves Survey Report April 1998
Central Research Insitute for Fisheries, Indonesia (CRIFI), P.O.Box 6650, Slipi, Jakarta 11401A, Indonesia.
Provincial Fisheries Service, P.O.Box 1125, Palembang, South Sumatra, Indonesia.
MRAG Ltd, 47 Princes Gate, London, SW7 2QA, United Kingdom.
UK Department For International Development
Fisheries Management Science Programme - Project R7043 |
Management Guidelines for Asian Floodplain Fisheries
Part 2: Summary of DFID research
FAO Fisheries technical paper 384/2
ISBN 92-5-104262-4 |
This document is an output from a project funded by the UK Department for International Development (DFID) for the benefit of developing countries. The views expressed are not necessarily those of the DFID.
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