Fisheries management today is highly contentious. The interests of fishers and fish processors, coastal communities, the government, and environmental organizations are often different and can even be mutually incompatible.

Fishing Grounds offers a comprehensive assessment of the legal, social, economic and biological context of marine fisheries management in the United States. Drawing on interviews with stakeholders from all sides of the issue, the authors seek common ground — and points of unresolved controversy — among the diversity of interests and viewpoints involved. Chapters examine:

history and background

status of marine fisheries

fishery productivity from biological, social, and economic perspectives

ownership of fishery resources

management structures and incentives

the roles of science and evaluation

Each chapter begins with legal, technical, and conceptual background to help readers understand the sets of issues involved and follows that with a balanced presentation of stakeholder views.

Fishing Grounds presents a useful overview of fisheries management options and positions regarding those options, providing valuable insight into the opinions and concerns of stakeholders and the sets of incentives to which those stakeholders respond. It is an important work for fisheries management professionals in industry, government agencies, and nongovernmental organizations, as well as for students and researchers involved with fisheries and fisheries management.