Estimating the Worldwide Extent of Illegal Fishing
Open accessAbstract
Illegal and unreported fishing contributes to overexploitation of fish stocks and is a hindrance to the recovery of fish populations and ecosystems. This study is the first to undertake a world-wide analysis of illegal and unreported fishing. Reviewing the situation in 54 countries and on the high seas, we estimate that lower and upper estimates of the total value of current illegal and unreported fishing losses worldwide are between $10 bn and $23.5 bn annually, representing between 11 and 26 million tonnes. Our data are of sufficient resolution to detect regional differences in the level and trend of illegal fishing over the last 20 years, and we can report a significant correlation between governance and the level of illegal fishing. Developing countries are most at risk from illegal fishing, with total estimated catches in West Africa being 40% higher than reported catches. Such levels of exploitation severely hamper the sustainable management of marine ecosystems. Although there have been some successes in reducing the level of illegal fishing in some areas, these developments are relatively recent and follow growing international focus on the problem. This paper provides the baseline against which successful action to curb illegal fishing can be judged.
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- Authors
- Agnew, D. J., Pearce, J., Pramod, G., Peatman, T., Watson, R., Beddington, J. R., & Pitcher, T. J.
- Affiliations
- Imperial College London (GB)
- University of British Columbia (CA)
- Government of the United Kingdom (GB)
- Corresponding author
- Agnew, David J.
- Venue
- PLoS ONE
- Publisher
- Public Library of Science (PLoS)
- Published
- 2009-02-25
- Volume
- 4
- Issue
- 2
- Pages
- e4570
- ISSN
- 1932-6203 (ISSN-L)
- PMC
- PMC2646833
- OpenAlex
- W2015918764
- Cited by
- 1,009
- References
- 42
- Citations by year
- 2026: 56 · 2025: 63 · 2024: 60 · 2023: 74 · 2022: 66 · 2021: 67 · 2020: 71 · 2019: 90 · 2018: 82 · 2017: 71 · 2016: 49 · 2015: 62 · 2014: 46 · 2013: 48 · 2012: 38
- FWCI
- 29.22
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- gold
- doi.org
- Locations
- PLoS ONE (publishedVersion, cc-by)
- PubMed Central (publishedVersion, cc-by)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Florida International University Digital Commons (Florida International University) (submittedVersion)
- FIU - Digital Commons (Florida International University) (submittedVersion)
- eCite Digital Repository (University of Tasmania) (submittedVersion)
- RePEc: Research Papers in Economics (submittedVersion)
- DOAJ (DOAJ: Directory of Open Access Journals) (submittedVersion, cc-by-sa)
- Figshare (submittedVersion, cc-by)
- Funders
- Pew Charitable Trusts
- Department for International Development
- Topics
- Physical Sciences › Environmental Science › Global and Planetary Change › Marine and fisheries research
- Social Sciences › Transportation › Maritime Security and History
- Physical Sciences › Environmental Science › Management, Monitoring, Policy and Law › Coastal and Marine Management
- Keywords
- illegal fishing, fisheries governance, fish stock overexploitation, high seas fisheries, developing countries, marine ecosystem management, fisheries management
- MeSH terms
- Animals, Behavior, Conservation of Natural Resources, Developing Countries, Fishes, Food Supply, International Cooperation, Jurisprudence, Oceans and Seas, Ecosystem
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