Theme C: Governance and the socio-economics of releases
17. GOVERNANCE MECHANISMS AND SOCIO-ECONOMIC CONSIDERATIONS FOR COMMUNAL SANDFISH SEA RANCHING IN THE PHILIPPINES
Marie Antonette S. Paña, Marie Antonette Juinio-Meñez
The Marine Science Institute, University of the Philippines, Diliman Quezon City
saplagio@upmsi.ph
Holothuria scabra, commonly referred to as sandfish, is currently the only commercially important tropical species that is mass cultured. Aside from the use of cultured sandfish for stock enhancement, sea ranching has been proposed as a means to provide supplemental income for small-scale fishers. Given the open access nature and multiple users of municipal waters in the Philippines, governance mechanisms and socio-economic considerations to minimize social conflicts and sustain sea ranching efforts are essential. Three communal pilot sea ranching sites were established in the provinces of Pangasinan and Zambales in north-western Philippines. To legitimize the establishment of the sea ranch, a gratuitous permit, supported by a legislative resolution from the local government, was acquired by community partners. Sea ranching was integrated within a resource management framework to benefit both the rights-holders and other members of the community. The sea ranch co-operators are fisher families with an average annual household income of US$ 1800. Each group belonged to an organization with shared experience in community based coastal resource management in their respective communities. Kinship and their long histories of friendships are the basic foundations for cooperative arrangements. Because of their involvement in managing protected areas and fishery law enforcement, the groups have good working relationships with their respective local governments. The ranch managers developed a system to ensure 24/7 guarding in the sea ranch and participated in the monitoring of the sandfish population. They hold regular monthly meetings to discuss management concerns and the schedules for guarding. Sharing of income from the harvests is proportionate to the level of effort and time invested by the members and a portion is contributed to the village council. Dialogues with other resource users and dissemination of information about the management rules help deter and minimize poaching incidents. Only sea cucumbers > 320 g are harvested. If multiple batches of juveniles (>3g) are released in year 1, the first harvest can made after eighteen months and two other harvests every six months thereafter. For a total of 16,000 juveniles released with an overall survival rate of at least 19%, the estimated total yield of dried sea cucumber is 173 kg (US$ 10,500). The co-operator’s share for two years is 18-29% of their annual household income (Table 1). There are no substantial opportunity costs from the perspective of the co-operator’s. In addition, the ecological benefits of sustaining a viable spawning population that can help replenish the wild population provide spill over benefits to other sea cucumber collectors.
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