A development of ecological risk screening with an application to fisheries off SW England

Centrefor Environment, Fisheries andAquacultureScience, LowestoftNR33 0HT, UK*Corresponding author: e-mail: john.cotter@phonecoop.coopCotter,J.,Lart,W.,deRozarieux,N.,Kingston,A.,Caslake,R.,LeQuesne,W.,Jennings,S.,Caveen,A.,andBrown,M.Adevelopmentof ecological risk screening with an application to fisheries off SW England. – ICES Journal of Marine Science, doi: 10.1093/icesjms/fsu167.Received2 May2014; revised 28 August 2014; accepted 2 September 2014.Adevelopmentoftheecologicalriskscreening(ERS)technique,scaleintensityandconsequenceanalysis(SICA),isdescribedandapplicationtothevariedfisheriesandecosystemoffthesouthwestofEnglandonbehalfofanindustrysteeringgroup(SG)issummarized.ThepurposewastoprioritizeecologicalriskssystematicallyandconsistentlyinrelationtopolicygoalsagreedbytheSG.Scientistslistedandadvisedonecosystemcomponents,theirunits(individualspecies,stocks,habitats,orcommunities)andattributes,aswellasagentsofchangeintheSW,theiractivities,andgeneralizedeffectsrelevanttothepolicygoals.Aworkinggroup(WG)offishers,fisheryobservers,technicaladvisors,andmarinescientistspairedeachunitwiththe activity thought most likely to impact the most sensitive policy goal, then scored risk according to defined rules spatially, temporally, and asintensity and duration of effects. The geometric mean of the four scores, slightly adjusted for unscored factors if necessary, was the relativeimpactscore(RIS).Withthisstandardizedmethod,themainaspectsofriskwereconsideredseparatelyandindependently,therebyassistingobjectiveprioritization.Nineteenunit–activitypairswerelistedaspriorityrisks(RIS .3)intheSWregionduringa2-dmeetingthatfullyexploitedthewiderangeofinformationandexperienceavailableattheWG.Socio-economicswasnotconsidered.TheERSfortheSWwasdesignedtobecompatiblewithothersimilarERSsthatmightbecarriedoutforneighbouringmarineregions.ERScanminimizeextramonitoringneededforecosystemman-agementand,inprinciple,collaboratingnon-fisheryagentsofchangecouldbeincluded.Byengagingallstakeholdersinthesettingofinitialprioritiesforaction andbyassemblingallavailablesourcesofinformation,ERSoffersa usefulstartingpointforholisticecosystemmanagement.Keywords:CelticSea,ecosystemapproachtofisheries,ecosystembasedfisheriesmanagement,ecologicalriskassessment,ecologicalriskscreening,England (SW), English channel, SICA.