Advanced fish stock assessment models

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Increasingly consumers want to buy fish that is caught sustainably - meaning that the fishery is not affecting the health of future fisheries. Although it can be difficult to decide if a fishery is sustainable, the United Nations Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO) and other organizations have developed detailed standards to help assess this. In Canada many fisheries have pursued certification with the International Marine Stewardship Council (MSC), which is a major organization involved in setting standards for sustainable fishing practices and certifying that fisheries meet these standards. MSC certified fish can result in better market access and improved prices to harvesters, leading to sustainable and more profitable fisheries in the long-term. ******This research program will focus on quantifying if existing fisheries harvest strategies (e.g. catch levels) are sustainable and proposing better alternatives when necessary. A related and important challenge in fish stock assessment is providing short (1-3 years) and medium-term (3-10 years) quantitative projections of the impacts of future management actions on changes in stock size. Mathematical models are used for these purposes and these models are based on the birth, growth, and death processes of the stock. Information available on these processes may come from large scale surveys or smaller but high intensity surveys. The complexity of the information and varying spatial scales is a problem for stock assessment. Best practice is evolving and case-specific.******The objectives of this program are to develop novel integrated and spatial stock assessments models. An integrated model strives to include all relevant data on stock productivity which is necessary to ensure that management decisions are based on the best possible information. Spatial models are required to include data sources from a range of spatial scales. Equally important, the productivity of a fish stock may depend on its spatial distribution. Initial applications will include Atlantic cod and snow crab. Integrated and spatial stock assessment models for such species do not exist because of the complexity of the species life-history processes and available data. Such models will be used to evaluate short to medium-term impacts of future harvest levels which will be important contributions to MSC certification initiatives for these stocks. These models will also be used to evaluate and optimize harvest strategies, with the objective of prosperous and sustainable fisheries.******This project will provide advanced training opportunities for students to develop skills for stock assessment and to assist governments and the fishing industry with their fisheries sustainability objectives and contribute to more prosperous fisheries in the future. Such skills are in high demand internationally and within Canada.