Addressing poaching in marine protected areas through voluntary surveillance and enforcement

Poaching renders many of the world’s marine protected areas (MPAs) ineffective. Because enforcement capacity is often limited, managers are attempting to bolster compliance by engaging the latent surveillance potential of... [ view full abstract ]

Poaching renders many of the world’s marine protected areas (MPAs) ineffective. Because enforcement capacity is often limited, managers are attempting to bolster compliance by engaging the latent surveillance potential of fishers. Yet, little is known about how fishers respond when they witness poaching. Here, we surveyed 2111 fishers living adjacent to 55 MPAs in seven countries and found that 48% had previously observed poaching. However, the most common response was inaction, with the primary reasons being: 1) conflict avoidance; 2) a sense that it was not their responsibility or jurisdiction; and 3) the perception that poaching was a survival strategy. We also quantified how institutional design elements related to fishers’ responses to poaching, and highlight avenues to engage fishers while mitigating risks. These include emphasising how poaching personally affects each fisher, promoting stewardship and personal responsibility norms, and poverty alleviation to reduce the need for fishers to poach for survival.