MASTS, 2017: A short animation outlining the main results of the 2014-15 EFF funded Sustainable Inshore Fisheries Project and how these influenced the development of the EMFF Scottish Inshore Fisheries Integrated Data System (SIFIDS) Project.
Scottish Inshore Fisheries Integrated Data System (SIFIDS) Project. An EMFF funded project led by the University of St Andrews (MASTS).
The European Maritime and Fisheries Fund (EMFF) has allocated £1.53 million of funding to support research into the development of an integrated system for the collection, collation, analysis and interrogation of data from the Scottish inshore fishing fleet.
It is envisaged that the system will incorporate a decision support tool able to utilise the information gathered to inform fisheries management and marine planning. Such a system would be required to be relatively inexpensive to deploy and operate, be highly flexible, have the capacity to engage with industry and utilise industry derived data collection as far as possible, whilst providing a robust and objective evidence base for use by inshore stakeholders.
The SIFIDS Project will build upon previous research funded through the European Fisheries Fund (EFF) and is designed to deliver a step change in the way that inshore fisheries in Scotland could be managed in cooperation with the industry. The project will focus on inshore fishing vessels around Scotland, where spatio-temporal information on the distribution of vessels and associated fishing effort is data deficient.
The SIFIDS Project was conceived by the MASTS Directorate to align with the three key elements highlighted in the 2015 Scottish Inshore Fisheries Strategy, which are:
- enhancement of the evidence base on which management decisions are taken;
- promotion of stakeholder participation, and;
- the incorporation of inshore fisheries activities within spatial marine planning.
The overall project has been commissioned to take place over a 30 month period, commencing December 2016 and running through until May 2019.
The SIFIDS Project is subdivided into 12 highly integrated “Work Packages” (WPs) ten of which are focused on the development of various aspects of the system and/or the collection of data relating to the inshore sector. The remaining two WPs encompass the engagement of the inshore industry and overall project coordination and oversight.
SIFIDS Project Work Packages
- Review and Optimisation of Shellfish Data Collection Strategies for Inshore Waters
- Development and Pilot Deployment of Autonomous Fisheries Data Harvesting
- Investigation into the Availability and Adaptability of Novel Technological Approaches
- Development of Novel, Automated Mechanisms for Collection of Scallop Stock Data
- Assessment of Socio-Economic and Cultural Character of the Scottish Inshore Fishery
- Capture and Incorporation of Experiential Fisheries Data
- Development of Pilot Data Resource for Collation and Interpretation of Data
- Engagement with Inshore Sector to Promote and Inform
- On board surveyors
- Identifying Fishing Activities and Their Associated Drivers
- Assessment and Consultation Regarding Options for Implementation of SIFIDS
- Project Co-ordination
Read more about the overall project and specific workstreams at MASTS.