Socio-economic indicators for sustainability and coastal zone management

Socio-economic indicators of sustainability.

Sustainability indicators are part of the governance framework for aquaculture, and most commentators now accept that the socio-economic as well as the environmental dimensions of sustainability should be included.These indicators need to measure not only the operating performance of commercial fish farms – which at its simplest could be summarized using financial ratios - but the wider impacts of aquaculture on society at large. Indeed, it is precisely these impacts which, within the DPSIR framework, can expected to invoke an institutional response intended to alter the way in which aquaculture is regulated and managed. (Figure 1: click to open a pdf).

The socio-economic indicators proposed here are summarized in Figure 2 (click to open pdf), classified in terms of four major governance objectives – supply availability, livelihood security, economic efficiency and social acceptability.It is important to emphasise that, like all indicators, they are often only meaningful when used comparatively. The basis of comparison may typically be either (i) normative – i.e. the performance of aquaculture is compared with some standard or norm considered acceptable (e.g. income per capita, environmental damage costs), or (ii) empirical – i.e. the industry’s performance is tracked over time or compared with that of another country (e.g. trends in employment, productivity, prices, etc). Further details on each of the indicators is given on the accompanying sheets, including an explanation of data sources and relevant studies.

Coastal Zone Management indicators