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Book (series)A review of the inland fisheries of India 2024
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No results found.India has abundant water resources including rivers, canals, ponds, lakes, reservoirs, upland lakes, and floodplain wetlands covering over 5.8 percent of the country. These environments harbour a rich fish fauna of 1 035 species that constitutes the basis for the inland fisheries sector, which annually produces 2 144 452 tonnes of fish – if enhanced and culture-based fisheries are included – corresponding to 21 percent of total fish production. Rivers like the Ganga, Brahmaputra, and Barak, alongside floodplain wetlands, play crucial roles, especially in the east and northeast. Lakes are abundant in upland areas. Reservoirs cover over 1 percent of India's land and hold untapped potential for fisheries development. Traditionally, fishing in inland water bodies has been a small-scale or subsistence activity. Fishing practices, crafts and gear used in inland fisheries are still traditional. Cooperative societies are present in reservoirs and wetlands giving fishers better bargaining power with traders and better prices for the fish. Inland fisheries are imperative for poverty alleviation, food security, gender empowerment, cultural services, ecosystem function, and biodiversity, and are important for achieving the Sustainable Development Goals. Important threats to inland fisheries include water scarcity, habitat loss, pollution, climate change and invasive species. However, several major river conservation programmes have been initiated.The collection of inland fishery catch statistics remains weak and production appears to be significantly under-reported in many states. A simplified method for defining water bodies and estimating catch is proposed and all States have been advised to follow the same definition for water bodies. -
Book (series)Review of the State of the World Fishery Resources: Inland Fisheries 2011
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No results found.The fishery statistics reported to FAO by countries and maintained in the FishStat database are analysed for trends in quantity and composition of catches from 1950 to 2009. Catches have been increasing at a steady rate throughout the period. Fish from inland water capture fisheries are an important source of animal protein, especially in landlocked countries and for populations riparian to lakes and rivers. Finfish contribute about 90 percent of the catch together with some crustaceans and molluscs. The accuracy of reporting of catches by taxonomic group has improved with time and more groups are being reported in 2009 than in 1950. At the same time, the percentage of catches assigned to the generic “freshwater fishes NEI” category has declined. Trends in catches and taxonomic groups are analysed for subcontinental regions under a more general continental heading. The regions are divided mainly by geography, although in some cases economic and political consideration s are used. Catches in the various regions of Africa, Asia and South and Central America have risen steadily over the period of the review, although there are local exceptions to the general trend. There is clear evidence that such increases are real in some individual fisheries, but generally the increases are attributed to improvements in reporting, whereby catches that were already there but previously ignored are now being incorporated into the reports. Catches in North America, an d most of Europe, have declined in the same period, which is attributed to shifts in economic conditions that make fishing not longer financially viable, and a greater public demand for recreational fishing. Catches from eastern Europe and the Russian Federation declined from a maximum in the 1980s, but have shown some signs of recovery in the last decade. In general, the world’s inland fisheries still appear viable although environmental pressures, such as damming, water abstraction a nd overexploitation, pose a potential threat to the maintenance of present levels of reproduction and recruitment, and hence, ultimately catch. -
Book (stand-alone)Restoration of productive aquatic ecosystems by small-scale fisheries and aquaculture communities in Asia
Good practices, innovations and success stories
2022Also available in:
No results found.This report showcases examples of actions taken by small-scale fishers and aquaculture farmers in Asia to restore the productivity of aquatic ecosystems. Small-scale fishers and fish farmers include some of the world’s most marginalized and impoverished people groups, yet their harvests account for over half of the world’s aquatic food production. The marine, coastal and freshwater ecosystems their livelihoods depend upon are degraded from human impacts and further at risk from climate change. Ecosystem restoration actions by fisherfolk communities can revitalize the socio-ecological services and sustain progress over time. Both passive and active restoration approaches are being employed across Asia’s marine, coastal and inland waterways. Fishers, fish farmers, and fishworkers’ restorative actions are focused on increasing the sustainability of their operations. Common approaches include eliminating destructive fishing, reducing overfishing through gear changes and effort control, restoring connectivity of floodplains and fish migration pathways, integrated aquaculture and rice-farming practices, re-stocking of native fisheries, and actively rehabilitating and / or re-establishing habitats. Progress is measurable through a diverse array of environmental, socio-economic and governance related metrics. Changes in fisheries catches, ecological connectivity, water quality, habitat diversity and structure, and fish consumption provide important measures of biodiversity gains (or losses). Common enablers of success include economic incentives, co-management and legal recognition of fishing rights, highly engaged fisherfolk cooperatives or community groups, women’s leadership and development, and community partnerships with stakeholders that focus on enabling fisherfolk’s own goals for sustainable livelihoods. Ecosystem restoration activities have not lasted when these enablers are insufficiently attended to and when environmental aspects of project feasibility, such as the choice of rehabilitation locations and / or species, are poorly planned. Successes in ecosystem restoration by fisherfolk can and are being scaled out to neighbouring communities and countries. Key to this is the sharing of stories, lessons learned and tools through south-south partnerships, learning exchanges, and women’s groups. Simple, low-cost tools and actions have enabled long-term engagement by small-scale fishers in sustainable operations. More complex actions, such as the uptake of integrated aquaculture systems, are also enabling stepwise changes in ecosystem restoration. By sharing stories from different ecosystems, fisheries, and geographies, this report seeks to help fisherfolk and their partners glean from one another and achieve faster progress in ecosystem restoration.
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