Bottom trawling is an activity that produces economic and social benefits, such as employment, income, and nutritious seafood for consumers. However, bottom trawling may also provide indirect economic and social benefits and costs to a third party that are not accounted for by the trawl operator. These indirect benefits and costs are known as Externalities. Just like in any business, if the indirect costs are greater than the indirect benefits of an activity then that activity should ideally be modified or eliminated. This is important to make sure the business is accepted and valued by the broader community.
This is important to make sure the business is accepted and valued by the broader community.
An example of an unaccounted indirect cost is the release of CO2 following combustion of diesel fuel by trawl operators (and anyone else that combusts fossil fuels). This cost is paid by society as a whole because these emissions contribute to global warming, which negatively impacts the environment, economies, and human health. Other examples include the impact of cheap imports on the profitability of trawl operators, fishery management regulations that increase trawl operator costs, and the mortality of discard species that are important to other fishers in other fisheries.
In contrast, a positive benefit or externality is awareness by trawl operators of the environmental impacts caused by trawling and their efforts to mitigate or eliminate this impact. These efforts help to preserve the function and resilience of the marine ecosystem upon which other marine users and businesses rely, and which also contributes to a healthy, functioning, and prosperous society.
Owning Externalities
Ideally, trawl operators should be aware of these externalities and do what they can to reduce or eliminate unaccounted costs to third parties. A failure to do so can negatively impact the social licence of trawl fisheries, while promotion of benefits can positively impact social licence. Trawl operators should also take steps to raise third party awareness of unaccounted costs that affect their own ability to operate.
What other externalities are associated with trawling?
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