The implementation of the ecosystem approach to fisheries management in Gökçeada, Turkey

Book excerpt: Gökçeada is Turkey’s largest island, and acts as a natural center for the transition points of migrating fish, located at the entrance of Saros Bay, and at a point where the Marmara Sea and the North Aegean waters meet. The banks surrounding Gökçeada, create rich fishing beds. It also hosts Turkey’s only marine park established in 1999. A lack of stock assessments, as well as co-management, has impeded fisheries management capabilities in the region. This document presents a first baseline report on the fisheries of Gökçeada to facilitate its transition to incorporating the principles of an ecosystem approach to fisheries management. This report was prepared as part of the project «Transition to Ecosystem Approach to Fisheries Management and Designing a Management Plan in Gökçeada, Turkey», carried out in cooperation with the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry and managed by Ege University with the participation of many other stakeholders and financed by the FAO EastMed Project. The first part of the report presents information on the fisheries, and the second section, presents threats to the sustainability of fishing. A review of all existing relevant data was completed in addition to fisher interviews performed in 2020 to properly understand the current state of the fisheries and threats affecting sustainability. The baseline report is the first step towards the preparation of a management plan for fisheries in Gökçeada. The success of this initiative requires the joint willingness and determination of all stakeholders, especially from the official institutions and the fishery cooperative.