Sustainable Management of Coastal Fisheries

Coastal fisheries represent critical sources of protein, employment and cultural heritage for millions worldwide. Sustainable management seeks to balance extraction with ecosystem health, integrating ecological principles, social equity and economic viability. Key challenges include overfishing, habitat degradation from coastal development, pollution and the accelerating impacts of climate change such as shifting species distributions and more frequent extreme weather events. Effective strategies draw on ecosystem-based management, adaptive governance and participatory co-management, combining scientific stock assessments with the traditional knowledge of fishers. Marine protected areas, seasonal closures and gear restrictions are deployed alongside efforts to rebuild habitats such as mangroves and seagrass beds that underpin nursery functions. Socio-economic dimensions are equally important: equitable benefit sharing, secure tenure rights and livelihood diversification foster community resilience. Advances in remote sensing, data-poor stock assessment methods and social-ecological modelling enable more responsive decision-making. The global significance of sustainable coastal fisheries lies not only in food security but also in coastal defence, biodiversity conservation and blue-economy development. By linking policy frameworks across local, national and international scales, and by embedding continuous monitoring and stakeholder engagement, coastal fisheries can be managed in ways that sustain both the resource base and the communities that depend on it.

Research from Nature Portfolio

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Sustainable Management of Coastal Fisheries publication trend

The graph below shows the total number of articles in sustainable management of coastal fisheries across all publications each year (not limited to Nature Index journals).

Technical terms

Co-management: A governance arrangement in which local resource users and authorities share responsibility for decision-making and enforcement.

Ecosystem-based management: An integrated approach that considers ecological relationships, human well-being and long-term sustainability rather than single-species targets.

Marine protected area (MPA): A defined section of coastal or marine environment designated for conservation and regulated human use to protect biodiversity and critical habitats.

Stock assessment: A scientific evaluation of fish population size and structure to inform sustainable harvesting levels and management measures.

Social-ecological system: A framework recognising the interdependence of human societies and ecosystems, emphasising feedbacks between social and ecological components.

References

1. Fishermen's community livelihood and socio-economic constraints in coastal areas: An exploratory analysis. Environmental Challenges (2024).
2. A comprehensive review on sustainable coastal zone management in Bangladesh: Present status and the way forward. Heliyon (2023).
3. Community-Driven Insights into Fish Assemblage, Microhabitats, and Management Strategies in the Meghna River Basin of Bangladesh. Sustainability (2023).