The sustainable utilization of skipjack tuna in Northern Aceh waters

Abstract

In recent years, production of skipjack tuna in Aceh was fluctuative in decreased trend due to relatively smaller fish size production. This study was aimed to analyse the skipjack tuna utilization sustainability on actual, maximum sustainable yield (MSY), maximum economic yield (MEY), and open-access (OA) conditions in North Aceh Waters. This study used time series data in 2009-2018. The analysis method used was a Gordon-Schaefer bioeconomical model. The results that the utilization of skipjack tuna in North Aceh Waters were at economical and biological overfishing. In long-term condition, this will potentially cause a decreased fish stock that will finally disrupt the sustainability level. In actual condition, the average of skipjack tuna utilization level per year was 163.77% more than the allowed total catching product, namely 2,712.64 ton per year. To achieve sustainable point, the fishermen should decrease their effort at 19.32% of the actual condition effort. The highest biomass level was occurred in MEY regime, followed by MSY and OA regimes. This means that the management of skipjack tuna in MEY regime is more conservative than in other regimes due to not spending skipjack tuna resource maximumly, but proposing to an optimum production level, which results in a maximum profit.