Not just recreation, but a new framework for life
For this paper, Nieboer and other participating researchers were able to build on the previous dataset. Their efforts have resulted in a global vision of inland recreational fisheries that highlights the nutritional and economic value of inland fisheries across 56 countries. The findings contribute to the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goal of Zero Hunger to protect food security while improving nutrition.
Reflecting global concerns about access to food, Nieboer prefers and advocates an alternative term, “transitional fisheries,” to describe fishing activities that are undertaken for reasons beyond recreation.
“One example is the rise of urban beach fishing across the United States, with many participants doing so to eat the fish they catch,” Nieboer says. “And there is often a cultural component as well — many people participate because catching and eating fish is an important part of their cultural or social identity.”
The shift from thinking of recreational fishing as a purely recreational activity to thinking about it as a multidimensional resource is one of the mindset shifts Nieboer and his research group hope to foster: a greater understanding of how freshwater resources are used can help us better manage those resources.
“Going forward, one of the central questions is how countries, governments and communities can better consider individuals who are often overlooked when fishing is understood through a ‘recreational’ lens,” Nieboer said. “If all of our management decisions and fishing regulations are aimed solely at improving the fishing experience for the typical sport fisherman targeting big game on a boat, we may inadvertently limit or alienate anglers who target smaller and more diverse fish from shore.”
Nieboer said the challenge in assessing inland fisheries reflects a tendency to downplay the experiences of certain groups.
“There’s an important social justice perspective to all of this work,” she says. “Globally, most of the people working in what we call ‘supply fisheries’ are low-income people who tend to be excluded from any kind of decision-making or data collection process. But their dependence on this resource, the potential risks and benefits of their involvement, and the non-negligible numbers of fish caught and consumed are all important reasons why they should not be overlooked.”
Nibois stresses that publicising the figures – estimated at around 1.3 million tonnes of inland fish consumed annually, with a value of around $9.95 billion – is a key incentive to get government attention.
“That’s why this data set is so valuable,” she says. “Agencies often need numbers to implement new policies or make better decisions.”
