Harvesting the Seas: Excess Capacity in U.S. Fisheries

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) has conducted an assessment in response to national and international concerns that overcapacity, overfishing and other often co-occurring undesirable outcomes of a common management problem prevent the attainment of the goal of productive and sustainable marine ecosystems. Other undesirable outcomes include high levels of bycatch, adverse impacts on habitat, less safe working conditions on fishing vessels, lower product quality, poor economic performance, less viable fishing communities, non-compliance with regulations and a management regime that is unnecessarily complex, contentious and costly. This book identifies and describes U.S. federally managed fisheries with the most severe examples of excess harvesting capacity, and recommends cost-effective and privately funded measures that could be used to reduce excess harvesting capacity.