Law-abiding fisherman from San Felipe are forced to travel 2 hours south where gillnet fishing is still legal in order to earn a living. Photo by Sean Bogle.
At its heart, the vaquita issue is an economic issue. Most fisherman continue to use gillnets because they feel like they have no other means to earn a living. The importance of providing alternative livelihoods has been recognized for a long time – in 2008 the Mexican government offered buyouts to local fisherman, and also began testing alternative vaquita-friendly fishing gear. Although only a few fisherman took the buyout, there are some success stories from community members who have started profitable businesses using the buyout money.
The alternative fishing gear program held great potential to turn the situation around and save the vaquita, but unfortunately it is widely believed to have been sabotaged by corrupt officials within the government agencies responsible for managing fisheries. Fisherman who opted to participate in the alternative gear testing have been fighting to get their permits to actually use the gear on a commercial scale for years, with no success. So although this program held great promise, it appears to have been stymied by government corruption.
San Felipe fisherman/inventor Tonicho (far left) shows off one of his gillnet alternatives. Photo by Sean Bogle.
Despite this, limited testing of alternative gear does continue with funding provided by the World Wildlife Fund. Unfortunately it seems unlikely at this stage that any of these alternative fishing gear programs will be implemented on a large enough scale, and within the very limited timeframe that would allow them to have a positive impact on the vaquita.
There is one organization that has been involved in addressing the vaquita issue from a socio-economic perspective for many years – The Intercultural Center for the Study of Deserts and Oceans (CEDO for short). CEDO has actually hired anthropologists to go out into these communities with the goal of finding innovative ways to shift the social and cultural perspectives associated with this issue. These anthropologists attend fishing coop meetings and try to embed themselves within the fishing community, with the goal of developing a deeper understanding of the social and economic perspectives that are driving people to participate in illegal fishing.
CEDO’s visitor center in Puerto Peñasco, Mexico.
The work that these CEDO representatives are doing is invaluable, and it highlights something that is often lacking in conservation efforts and endangered species recovery programs. Humans are always at the center of these issues, and to create lasting change it’s critical to address the human problems that are driving the environmental problems. It’s sad to say that it seems unlikely that CEDO’s efforts on this issue will prevent the extinction of the vaquita – but they are severely restricted by available funding. If they had more time, and more resources available to them, they would have a serious shot at not just saving the vaquita, but at transforming the communities of the upper gulf in a hugely positive way.