Corporate management of the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands lobster fishery

Limited entry and biological quotas were implemented in the lobster fishery of the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands in 1991, during a period of declining stock abundance. A companion use-it-or-lose-it permit provision has had the perverse effect of increasing fishing effort during times of declining stocks. Despite its unfavorable short-term prospects, the fishery has the potential to be very lucrative for a small number of boats over the long term. This paper introduces a dramatically different management regime that would create ownership rights in a private management corporation for the current limited-entry permit holders. This corporation would function within a renewable operating contract with the government to protect the public interest in the conservation of the lobster population and its associated ecosystem. Published by Elsevier Science Ltd.