Risk-based fisheries assessment considering spatio-temporal component for Korean waters

The existing EBFA (ecosystem-based fisheries assessment) approach assesses impacts of fisheries on sustainability, biodiversity, habitat, and socio-economic benefit, however, it does not account for spatial variations. In the current study, a spatial component was incorporated into the EBFA to better assess the following risk indices: risk score, objectives risk index, species risk index, fisheries risk index, and ecosystem risk index. To demonstrate, this extended approach was applied to the ecosystems of the East Sea and East China Sea. Since the existing EBFA produced a mean value of the overall ecosystem components, it was difficult to use the results as baseline data for spatial management. The extended EBFA—the approach using data for each index and sea block—enables an ecological risk assessment for each sea block. This approach is useful for setting intensive yet practical management measures that focus on indices and/or sea blocks with high risks, making good use of the results obtained from each sea block. The approach is particularly useful for introducing fishing ground closure, fishery resource area protection, marine area protection, and other management measures rooted in spatial management.