As part of the SOST-Erizo project, which is a part of the Redemar program that promotes collaboration between the fishing sector and Galician scientific organizations
The sea urchin fishery in Galicia holds significant socioeconomic importance, and the demand for this resource has increased in recent years. However, sea urchins are highly sensitive to the effects of climate change, underscoring the importance of achieving sustainable practices and avoiding overexploitation. In order to promote the long-term sustainability of the resource, researchers from the Marine Research Center of the University of Vigo (CIM) participated in the SOST-Erizo project, an initiative that is part of the Redemar program of the Galician government, which promotes collaboration between the fishing sector and Galician scientific organizations. The results of this project were presented this week at an event attended by representatives of Galician fishing communities and the public administration.
The project, involving personnel from the Future Oceans Lab group at CIM, aims to improve the knowledge and long-term sustainability of sea urchins in four dimensions: ecological, economic, social, and governance. The project represents an innovative and scientifically grounded effort for collaborative and efficient sea urchin fisheries management. Researchers have proposed an interdisciplinary methodology to quantitatively measure sustainability and promote the implementation of innovative technologies in sea urchin fisheries management. Additionally, it focuses on training and raising awareness of sustainability within the fishing sector.
An Index Providing a Sustainability Score
Specifically, after conducting research, a sustainability index was introduced, created by CIM research personnel in collaboration with the Marine Research Center (CIMA) of the Ministry of the Sea, along with Mareira Bizi and the Baiona and Lira fishing communities. To achieve this, four workshops were held in the participating fishing communities to discuss with the sector the most relevant indicators for the four dimensions of the index: environmental, economic, social, and governance. The developed tool provides a sustainability score that will assist shellfish gatherers and fishermen in improving their internal management to preserve the resource and ensure the sector’s long-term resilience.
During the session, attended by representatives of fishing communities, technical experts, and the General Director of Fisheries Development of the Galician government, Susana Rodríguez, it was emphasized that the sector’s “good disposition and participation” had led to productive workshops with the fishing communities, which showed interest in the index and proposed the possibility of digitizing and automating the entire process or creating a mobile application for resource tracking by each collector. The index was presented by Elena Ojea, a researcher from the Future Ocean Lab.
Source: DUVI
