An ecosystem approach in sustainable fisheries management through local ecological knowledge in Belgium (LECOFISH)

LECOFISH collected fisheries information and spatial data through the use of “Local Ecological Knowledge” (LEK). The objective was to improve ecosystem knowledge and sustainable fisheries management in the Belgian Part of the North Sea (BPNS) by making use of oral information gathered from professional and recreational fishermen during a period of 50 years (1960-2010). This information allows analyzing spatial and temporal distribution of fishery activities in the BPNS based on catches. LECOFISH is the first Belgian study to translate fishermen’s LEK into spatial maps for the BPNS.