Is Sustainable Exploitation of Coral Reefs Possible? A View from the Standpoint of the Marine Aquarium Trade

This article proposes the exportation of reef animals for the marine aquarium trade (MAT) as an economic alternative to overfishing for human communities that have been historically dependent on coral reefs. The authors argue that selective fishing of MAT species is sustainable with appropriate regulation, and is desirable because the cultural and social dependence on coral reefs of humans constitutes an ecological system along with the reefs that must be managed as a whole. The success of this approach relies on intensive regulation, monitoring, and enforcement at the local, national, and international level, involving harvesters, export authorities, import authorities in broad and diverse international markets, retailers and retail customers, most of which is not currently in existence. The authors do not discuss how these extensive and complex monitoring mechanisms are to be developed or funded, or how reef species may be impacted in the meantime. They also argue against replacing wild MAT with aquacultural production of MAT species, since that would remove the economic benefit of the wild MAT from the human economy.

“Coral reefs are at the brink of a global, system-wide collapse. Human populations living at the water’s edge are a vital key to the long-term survival and maintenance of these global biodiversity hotpots. Global trade combined with high levels of poverty threatens to siphon out biodiversity riches from developing nations to the developed world for short-term gains. The difficult challenge for local governance, conservationists, and resource managers alike is to create and maintain as diverse and well-functioning a Coral Reef Socio-Ecological System (CRSES) as possible. A fundamental shift in the structure of business practices, incentives and values are needed to move the marine aquarium trade to a more sustainable state. Rapid growth in the cultured coral trade and better fishery management in small fisheries are bright spots in the marine aquarium trade, and demonstrate that this trade can be part of a broader solution to reef conservation.”