Social structure and debates on fisheries management in the Atlantic surf clam fishery

Abstract

The surf clam fishery of the mid-Atlantic experienced a sharp decline in resources in the mid-1970s and impressive increase in clam populations by the mid-1980s. Public response to the former, triggered by a severe anoxic condition and near-disaster in 1976, was to impose strict regulations on the fishing fleet and create limits on the number of vessels. Response to the latter has been to impose even stricter regulations and to move toward a privatized limited access regime. We show how social structure within the fishing industry affects the management process.