To eat or not to eat? A socioecological decision model to evaluate sustainable use of the dioxin rich Baltic herring and salmon

Ecosystem-based fisheries management aims to achieve sustainable use of fish stocks in a socioecologically balanced manner, paying attention to human-environment interconnections. This requires systemic perspective to management: interactions between species, environmental conditions and human pressures determine the productivity and health of the ecosystem. These further on define the limits of the sustainable use, where both environmental, social, and economic aspects are considered. In the BONUS project GOHERR we analyze alternative ways to reduce the dioxins accumulating to humans via eating Baltic herring and salmon. Dioxin compounds accumulate to fatty tissues, thus the concentrations in the organisms increase cumulatively along the food chain. On the other hand, fatty fish as part of human diet form an excellent source of healthy Omega-3 fatty acids and vitamin-D. We study the impact of different fishing regulations and fish eating recommendations to find ecologically and socially sustainable ways to use Baltic herring and salmon, acknowledging the risks and utilities to different sectors. A probabilistic influence diagram is presented, based on modular model coupling, where the output of an ecosystem model serves as an input to a human health risk–benefit model. The management options are evaluated acknowledging all the three aspects of sustainability.
Close