Hostname: page-component-8448b6f56d-t5pn6 Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-04-19T08:10:42.264Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

History, culture, infrastructure and export markets shape fisheries and reef accessibility in India's contrasting oceanic islands

Part of: Humans and Island Environments

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  18 August 2017

MAHIMA JAINI ,
SAHIR ADVANI Open the ORCID record for SAHIR ADVANI [Opens in a new window] ,
KARTIK SHANKER ,
MEERA A. OOMMEN  and
NAVEEN NAMBOOTHRI
MAHIMA JAINI*
Affiliation:
Dakshin Foundation, A-001 Samvriddhi Gardenia Apartments, 88/3 Byataranapura, Sahakarnagar A Block, Bangalore, 560092, India
SAHIR ADVANI
Affiliation:
Dakshin Foundation, A-001 Samvriddhi Gardenia Apartments, 88/3 Byataranapura, Sahakarnagar A Block, Bangalore, 560092, India Institute for the Oceans and Fisheries, AERL, 2202 Main Mall, The University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, V6T 1Z4, Canada
KARTIK SHANKER
Affiliation:
Dakshin Foundation, A-001 Samvriddhi Gardenia Apartments, 88/3 Byataranapura, Sahakarnagar A Block, Bangalore, 560092, India Ashoka Trust for Research in Ecology and the Environment (ATREE), Royal Enclave Sriramapura, Jakkur Post, Bangalore, 560064, India Centre for Ecological Sciences, Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore, 560012, India
MEERA A. OOMMEN
Affiliation:
Dakshin Foundation, A-001 Samvriddhi Gardenia Apartments, 88/3 Byataranapura, Sahakarnagar A Block, Bangalore, 560092, India
NAVEEN NAMBOOTHRI
Affiliation:
Dakshin Foundation, A-001 Samvriddhi Gardenia Apartments, 88/3 Byataranapura, Sahakarnagar A Block, Bangalore, 560092, India
*
*Correspondence: Mahima Jaini email: jainimahima@gmail.com
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Summary

Islands offer unique model systems for studying fisheries development in relation to the growing global seafood trade. This study examines how export-driven fisheries in India's oceanic islands (Andaman and Nicobar Islands and Lakshadweep Islands) differ significantly as a result of their varied history, culture, available infrastructure and market access. Despite being geographically closer to export centres on the Indian mainland, processing and transport infrastructure in the Lakshadweep Islands are limited. This only allows for the trade of non-perishable commodities like dried tuna that are caught using traditional pole-and-line fishing techniques, restricting reef exploitation to local preference-based consumption and opportunistic export. The Andaman Islands, on the other hand, with multiple daily flight connections and large private and government processing facilities, are better connected to export markets. The relatively recent and multicultural fisheries of these islands supply marine commodity chains for reef fishery goods such as dried shark fins, frozen snapper fillets and chilled groupers. The Nicobar Islands are furthest away from mainland export centres and are mostly populated by indigenous communities – fishing here is mostly for subsistence and local sale. Revised estimates of travel times to export market centres are counterintuitive in terms of geographical distances and are significantly different from travel times to local markets.

Keywords

accessibilitytravel timeexport marketsoceanic islandsinfrastructuretraditional managementcoral reef fisheriesgroupertunasettlement history
Type
Papers
Information
Environmental Conservation , Volume 45 , Issue 1: Thematic section. Humans and Island Environments , March 2018 , pp. 41 - 48
Copyright
Copyright © Foundation for Environmental Conservation 2017 

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

Footnotes

Supplementary material can be found online at https://doi.org/10.1017/S037689291700042X

References

AAI (2016) Airports Authority of India [www document]. URL www.aai.aero/AAI/main.jsp Google Scholar
Advani, S. (2013) Gastropods to groupers – a history of fisheries from 1950 to the present day in Wandoor, South Andaman. In: International Conference on Small-Scale Fisheries Governance, pp. 246–256. Hyderabad, India: Centre for Economic and Social Studies.Google Scholar
Advani, S., Sridhar, A., Namboothri, N., Chandi, M. & Oommen, M.A. (2013) Emergence and Transformation of Marine Fisheries in the Andaman Islands. Bangalore, India: Dakshin Foundation and ANET.Google Scholar
ANI Directorate of Fisheries (2014) Royalty Export Records 2001–2014. Port Blair, India: Directorate of Fisheries, Andaman and Nicobar Islands.Google Scholar
Anderson, C., Huntington, T., Macfayden, G., Powers, J., Scott, I. & Stocker, M. (2012) Pole and Line Skipjack Fishery in the Maldives. MSC Certification Final Report, Version 4. Dartmouth, Canada: Moody Marine Ltd.Google Scholar
Arthur, R. (2013) Happenstance and the accidental resilience of the Lakshadweep reefs. Current Conservation 7: 30–35.Google Scholar
Berkes, F., Hughes, T.P., Steneck, R.S., Wilson, J.A., Bellwood, D.R., Crona, B., Folke, C., Gunderson, L.H., Leslie, H.M., Norberg, J., Nystrom, M., Olsson, P., Osterblom, H., Scheffer, M. & Worm, B. (2006) Globalization, roving bandits, and marine resources. Science 311: 1557–1558.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Bhathal, B. (2014) Government-led Development of India's Marine Fisheries Since 1950: Catch and Effort Trends, and Bioeconomic Models for Exploring Alternative Policies. Vancouver, Canada: University of British Columbia.Google Scholar
Bhatta, R. (2006) Marketing of Smoked and Dried Tuna (Masmin) of Lakshadweep. Chennai, India: Centre for Action Research on Environment, Science and Society (CARESS).Google Scholar
Brewer, T.D., Cinner, J.E., Green, A. & Pressey, R.L. (2013) Effects of human population density and proximity to markets on coral reef fishes vulnerable to extinction by fishing. Conservation Biology 27: 443–452.Google Scholar
Cash, D.W., Adger, W., Berkes, F., Garden, P., Lebel, L., Olsson, P., Pritchard, L. & Young, O. (2006) Scale and cross-scale dynamics: governance and information in a multilevel world. Ecology and Society 11: 8.Google Scholar
Cash, D.W. & Moser, S.C. (2000) Linking global and local scales: designing dynamic assessment and management processes. Global Environmental Change 10: 109–120.Google Scholar
Chandi, M., Mishra, C. & Arthur, R. (2015) Sharing mechanisms in corporate groups may be more resilient to natural disasters than kin groups in the Nicobar Islands. Human Ecology 43: 709–720.Google Scholar
Cinner, J.E., Graham, N.A.J., Huchery, C. & MacNeil, M.A. (2013) Global effects of local human population density and distance to markets on the condition of coral reef fisheries. Conservation Biology 27: 453–458.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Cinner, J.E., Huchery, C., MacNeil, M.A., Graham, N.A.J., McClanahan, T.R., Maina, J., Maire, E., Kittinger, J.N., Hicks, C.C., Mora, C., Allison, E.H., D'agata, S., Hoey, A., Feary, D.A., Crowder, L., Williams, I.D., Kulbicki, M., Vigliola, L., Wantiez, L., Edgar, G., Stuart-Smith, R.D., Sandin, S.A., Green, A.L., Hardt, M.J., Beger, M., Friedlander, A., Campbell, S.J., Holmes, K.E., Wilson, S.K., Brokovich, E., Brooks, A.J., Cruz-Motta, J.J., Booth, D.J., Chabanet, P., Gough, C., Tupper, M., Ferse, S.C.A., Sumaila, U.R. & Mouillot, D. (2016) Bright spots among the world's coral reefs. Nature 535: 416–419.Google Scholar
Cinner, J.E., McClanahan, T.R., Daw, T.M., Graham, N.A.J., Maina, J., Wilson, S.K. & Hughes, T.P. (2009) Linking social and ecological systems to sustain coral reef fisheries. Current Biology 19: 206–212.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Coulthard, S., Johnson, D. & McGregor, J.A. (2011) Poverty, sustainability and human wellbeing: a social wellbeing approach to the global fisheries crisis. Global Environmental Change 21: 453–463.Google Scholar
Crona, B.I., Van Holt, T., Petersson, M., Daw, T.M. & Buchary, E. (2015) Using social–ecological syndromes to understand impacts of international seafood trade on small-scale fisheries. Global Environmental Change 35: 162–175.Google Scholar
Dorairaj, K. & Soundararajan, R. (1985) Exploited marine fishery resources of Andaman and Nicobar Islands. Journal of Andaman Science Association 1: 49–58.Google Scholar
Eriksson, H., Österblom, H., Crona, B., Troell, M., Andrew, N., Wilen, J. & Folke, C. (2015) Contagious exploitation of marine resources. Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment 13: 435–440.Google Scholar
Fabinyi, M. (2015) Producing for Chinese luxury seafood value chains: different outcomes for producers in the Philippines and North America. Marine Policy 63: 1–7.Google Scholar
Foale, S., Cohen, P., Januchowski-Hartley, S., Wenger, A. & Macintyre, M. (2011) Tenure and taboos: origins and implications for fisheries in the Pacific. Fish and Fisheries 12: 357–369.Google Scholar
Froese, R. & Pauly, D. (2017) FishBase [www document]. URL www.fishbase.org Google Scholar
FSI (2011) Marine Fisheries Census 2010: Union Territories of Andaman and Nicobar Islands and Lakshadweep Islands. Mumbai, India: Fisheries Survey of India.Google Scholar
Hicks, C.C., Crowder, L.B., Graham, N.A.J., Kittinger, J.N. & Cornu, E.L. (2015) Social drivers forewarn of marine regime shifts. Frontiers in Ecology and Environment 14: 252–260.Google Scholar
Hicks, C.C., Levine, A., Agrawal, A., Basurto, X., Breslow, S.J., Carothers, C., Charnley, S., Coulthard, S., Dolsak, N., Donatuto, J., Garcia-Quijano, C., Mascia, M.B., Norman, K., Poe, M.R., Satterfield, T., & Levin, P.S. (2016) Engage key social concepts for sustainability. Science 352: 38–40.Google Scholar
Hoon, V. (2003) Socio-economic Dimensions and Action Plans for Conservation of Coastal Resources Based on an Understanding of Anthropogenic Threats. Chennai, India: Centre for Action Research on Environment Science and Society (CARESS).Google Scholar
Hornell, J. (1910) Report on the results of a fishery cruise along the Malabar Coast and the Laccadive Islands in 1908. Madras Fisheries Bulletin 4: 71–126.Google Scholar
Jaini, M. & Hisham, J. (2013) Sustainable pole and line tuna fisheries in the Indian Ocean: does Lakshadweep hold up to Maldives’ MSC standards? In: International Conference on Small-Scale Fisheries Governance, p. 17. Hyderabad, India: Centre for Economic and Social Studies.Google Scholar
Karkarey, R., Kelkar, N., Lobo, A.S., Alcoverro, T. & Arthur, R. (2014) Long-lived groupers require structurally stable reefs in the face of repeated climate change disturbances. Coral Reefs 33: 289–302.Google Scholar
Kittinger, J.N. (2013) Human dimensions of small-scale and traditional fisheries in the Asia–Pacific region. Pacific Science 67: 315–325.Google Scholar
Maire, E., Cinner, J.E., Velez, L., Huchery, C., Mora, C., D'agata, S., Laurent Vigliola, L., Wantiez, L., Kulbicki, M. & Mouillot, D. (2016) How accessible are coral reefs to people? A global assessment based on travel time. Ecology Letters 19: 351–360.Google Scholar
McClenachan, L. & Kittinger, J.N. (2013) Multicentury trends and the sustainability of coral reef fisheries in Hawai'i and Florida. Fish and Fisheries 14: 239–255.Google Scholar
Minn, M. (2016) mmQGIS plugin [www document]. URL http://michaelminn.com/linux/mmqgis Google Scholar
MOA (2014) Handbook on Fisheries Statistics. New Delhi, India: Ministry of Agriculture.Google Scholar
Muldoon, G., Sadovy, Y.J., Shea, S., Tam, I., Welford, R. & Whitford, A. (2015) Mostly Legal but Not Sustainable; How Airlines Can Support Sustainable Trade in Live Reef Food fish. Hong Kong, China: ADM Capital Foundation.Google Scholar
Mustafa, A.M. (2011) Perch Fishery in Andaman Islands. Port Blair, India: Andaman Chamber of Commerce and Industry.Google Scholar
Patankar, V., D'Souza, E., Alcoverro, T. & Arthur, R. (2015) Erosion of traditional marine management systems in the face of disturbances in the Nicobar archipelago. Human Ecology 43: 697–707.Google Scholar
Pillai, N.G. & Satheeshkumar, P. (2012) Biology, fishery, conservation and management of Indian Ocean tuna fisheries. Ocean Science Journal 47: 411–433.Google Scholar
Pillai, N.G.K., Vivekanandan, E. & Said Koya, K.P. (2006) Status of fisheries of Lakshadweep. Marine Fisheries Information Service 187: 1–7.Google Scholar
Planning Commission (2007) Lakshadweep Development Report. New Delhi, India: Academic Foundation.Google Scholar
Planning Commission (2008) Andaman and Nicobar Islands Development Report. New Delhi, India: Academic Foundation.Google Scholar
QGIS Development Team (2016) QGIS Geographic Information System. Open Source Geospatial Foundation Project [www document]. URL http://www.qgis.org/ Google Scholar
Sadovy de Mitcheson, Y., Craig, M.T., Bertoncini, A.A., Carpenter, K.E., Cheung, W.W.L., Choat, J.H., Cornish, A.S., Fennessy, S.T., Ferreira, B.P., Heemstra, P.C., Liu, M., Myers, R.F., Pollard, D.A., Rhodes, K.L., Rocha, L.A., Russell, B.C., Samoilys, M.A. & Sanciangco, J. (2013) Fishing groupers towards extinction: a global assessment of threats and extinction risks in a billion dollar fishery. Fish and Fisheries 14: 119–136.Google Scholar
Saigal, O. (1990) Lakshadweep. New Delhi, India: National Book Trust.Google Scholar
Scales, H., Balmford, A., Liu, M., Sadovy, Y. & Manica, A. (2006) Keeping bandits at bay? Science 313: 612–613.Google Scholar
Sivadas, M. & Wesley, S.G. (2006) Community based local management of fisheries – a paradigm from Minicoy. Lakshadweep. Ecology, Environment and Conservation 12: 705–706.Google Scholar
Stevens, K., Irwin, B., Kramer, D. & Urquhart, G. (2014) Impact of increasing market access on a tropical small-scale fishery. Marine Policy 50: 46–52.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Vaidik, A. (2010) Imperial Andamans: Colonial Encounter and Island History. Cambridge, UK: Palgrave Macmillan.Google Scholar
Watson, R.A., Green, B.S., Tracey, S.R., Farmery, A. & Pitcher, T.J. (2016) Provenance of global seafood. Fish and Fisheries 17: 585–595.Google Scholar
Whittingham, E., Campbell, J. & Townsley, P. (2003) Poverty and Reefs. Paris, France: DFID-IMM-IOC/UNESCO.Google Scholar
Wilbanks, T.J. & Kates, R.W. (1999) Global change in local places: how scale matters. Climatic Change 43: 601–628.Google Scholar
Zacharia, S. (2007) Fisheries of Lakshadweep with special reference to livelihood issues. Union Territory of Lakshadweep Technical Digest 10: 16–19.Google Scholar
Supplementary material: Image

Jaini supplementary material S1

Supplementary Figure

Download Jaini supplementary material S1(Image)
Image 19.5 MB
Supplementary material: File

Jaini supplementary material S2

Jaini supplementary material

Download Jaini supplementary material S2(File)
File 33.3 KB
Supplementary material: File

Jaini supplementary material S3

Jaini supplementary material

Download Jaini supplementary material S3(File)
File 29.2 KB
Supplementary material: File

Jaini supplementary material S4

Jaini supplementary material

Download Jaini supplementary material S4(File)
File 36.4 KB