Rights-based fishing

Rights-based fishing is a management approach that assigns specific property rights or access privileges to fishers or groups, such as catch shares or fishing quotas. This system encourages sustainable practices by giving fishers a stake in maintaining fish populations, since they can benefit from long-term health of the resources. It shifts responsibility from open access to regulated, rights-holders, promoting efficiency, conservation, and economic stability. Essentially, rights-based fishing aligns individual incentives with environmental sustainability, helping to prevent overfishing and ensuring that fish stocks remain healthy for the future.