For Micronesians, the sea and its bounty have been a central part of daily life for thousands of years, as
reflected in their lore and customs. However, unbalanced commercialization of coastal resources and a
lack of parallel management have allowed unsustainable fishing practices to abound, with coastal
fisheries now characterized by excess harvest and unethical and destructive fishing methods. Across
Micronesia, poor management of commercial fishing has resulted in the virtual extinction of some species
in some jurisdictions, reductions in abundance and mean fish size, age, and fecundity for many
commercially important nearshore species, changes in coastal fish communities, and severe impacts to the
reproductive and replenishment potential of fish spawning aggregations. Adding to this are poor land use
and development activities, such as dredging, unabated pollution, and upland land clearing that have
contributed to degraded coastal and nearshore habitats, particularly coral reefs. Today, the regional
commercial reef fishery is threatening the economic potential and development of non-extractive
industries (e.g., tourism), as well as socio-economic and food security. Thus, there is an urgent need to
lessen the impacts through better, restructured management institutions (along with their policies and
actions).
The current study examines market forces driving overfishing in the eight jurisdictions of Micronesia:
Yap, Kosrae, Pohnpei and Chuuk, Palau, the Marshall Islands, the Northern Mariana Islands, and Guam.
Case studies, fisher surveys, and literature reviews were used to analyze the historical context of coastal
fisheries and to identify potential changes in socio-economic, political, and management practices that
could improve sustainability. Similar to past research on these subjects, this study’s overall conclusion is
that coastal fisheries are in decline throughout Micronesia and a substantial reduction in catch volume is
needed until sustainable management targets can be achieved. To accomplish this, reforms in the ways
that coastal fish are marketed and managed are needed in all jurisdictions to ensure long-term socioeconomic
security, including providing equity to fish prices and the protection of undersized fish and
spawning stocks to improve fish population growth. Catalyzing declines of marine resources in some
jurisdictions are open access property regimes that dampen the sense of resource ownership and
responsibility and stimulate the “race to fish.” Resource declines were typically most severe in open
access jurisdictions, while those with low population density and those operating under stronger and more
intact customary marine tenure systems tended to be less overfished. Nonetheless, degraded fisheries and
impacts to fish stocks from unsustainable fishing practices were noted in all jurisdictions, regardless of
the level of traditional management being exercised.
A number of key socio-economic drivers were found to contribute to marine resource declines: (1) the
change from a subsistence to cash economy; (2) an erosion of customary marine tenure; (3) a lack of
political will for protecting marine resources; (4) an absence of effective, responsive fisheries
management; (5) increasing population pressures and demand for reef resources, including export; (6)
undervalued reef and pelagic resources; (7) high external commodity costs; (8) unsustainable use of
modernized fishing gear; (9) an erosion of traditional fishing ethics and practices; and (10) a paucity of
educational and alternative employment opportunities.