Shark Fishing: The Tradeoff Between Ecological Sustainability and Local Livelihoods

Let’s dive into why sharks are so important…

It is no secret that sharks all around the world are under an immense anthropogenic threat at the hands of humans. Globally, there are over 500 different species of sharks, all of which somehow aid in the protection of the delicate balance between marine habitats. Every single year nearly 100 million sharks are killed for various economically driven rationales.

To put this into perspective, according to the Florida Museum of Natural History, in 2023 alone there were ten fatal shark attacks. While this number would ideally be zero, it is important to remember that these are apex predators that are crucial for ecological balance and marine sustainability. Apex predators are at the very top of the food chain and are responsible for balancing the numbers of prey in their habitats. Without these predators, the number of prey will increase meaning entire ecosystems will become imbalanced due to the lack of environmental control. Sharks regulate species abundance, distribution, and diversity, thus affecting the health of marine habitats. 

What is shark finning? 

Aforementioned, shark finning is the process of cutting the dorsal, pectoral and caudal fins off of the shark. This happens while the sharks are still alive, however, in most countries to fin sharks while they are still alive is strictly prohibited. Furthermore, there are some places where it is legal to take their fins from the body after they have been caught and brought back to land. Shark fins have extremely high cultural and monetary value in certain places, more specifically Asian cultures.

Historically, Chinese emperors opted to serve shark fin soup to honor their guests as they assumed it had medicinal benefits. Along with medicinal benefits, this dish is held with high status as it is very expensive; if someone is able to afford shark fin soup they must come from a wealthy background. This modality of thinking has not faded over time, rather it has become more prominent throughout Western expansion as well. Shark fin soup is still served in many places, especially for special occasions such as weddings and Lunar New Year celebrations.

Summatively, shark finning is a holistically unsustainable and unethical practice, however, this industry fuels many different economies globally, creating a tradeoff between ecological sustainability and local livelihoods. 

The trade-off between Ecological Sustainability and Local Livelihoods

While the shark finning trade is immensely detrimental to the environment, it supports countless economies in less developed countries. Despite the illegalities around the shark fin trade some countries enforce, due to the lack of global legislation and prohibition, the fins end up in various countries regardless. Indonesia is located in the center of the coral triangle and is home to a plethora of shark species, many of which are endemic.

However, Indonesia is the world’s largest shark fishing nation, and annually they catch more sharks than any other country globally. Indonesia’s economy relies on tourism as a whole, but in areas with little tourism the economy and local livelihoods depend on other forms of income. This is where things get tricky, the fishermen that specifically fish for sharks have been accustomed to these practices their whole lives, and the same is for their family members before them. This is a generational and habitual practice that has been present in Indonesia, and other countries, for a very long time. Because both the shark fishing and shark finning trade have become interwoven with many local livelihoods and economies, it is extremely difficult to provide education as to why sharks are so important for our ecosystems.

One of Indonesia’s most popular shark markets is in Tanjung Luar, West Nusa Tenggara. Tanjung Luar is a small fishing village where hundreds of fishermen depend on shark fishing to support their families and make a liveable wage.

It is easy to view the shark fishing in this community as “cruel” or “inhumane”, however, it is much more complex than that. These are humans with genuine lives and generational habits and fishing practices that will not disappear overnight. I have visited Tanjung Luar and it was an experience I will hold close to my heart throughout my conservation career. While I was walking throughout the market I saw countless sharks on display being measured and prepared to be sold for profit. Their fins will be exported to other countries such as Hong Kong, China, Singapore, Japan, and Thailand. The meat of the shark will be sold across East Lombok Regencies and Middle Lombok Regencies; the meat is cheap so many families can afford to buy it and consume it as their source of animal protein.

Other areas in Indonesia that have been found to consume shark meat are Muncar (East Java), Bali, Pangandaran (West Java), and Kupang (East Nusa Tenggara).  Some of the most prominent species I witnessed being brought into the market were hammerheads, tiger sharks, thresher sharks, and gray reef sharks, however there were countless more. More than one hundred sharks were being brought from the boats, all caught over two weeks out at sea. The entire time I was standing alongside these fishermen I was not angry, I was not upset, and I most certainly was not blaming them. As someone who comes from a first-world developed country, I know it is incredibly easy to judge others for their lifestyles if they are even the slightest bit different from yours.

However, as a conservationist, you can not view these fishermen as your enemy, or as somebody below you. Their livelihoods are dependent on sharks, synonymous to the way marine habitats are dependent on them. Tanjung Luar is just one example of a less developed, lower-income, fishing community, and there are countless more all across the globe fighting the same battles. Contrary to popular stereotypes, some of the fishermen, if not all of them, do not wish their lifestyle onto their children. According to a blog composed by OceanMimic, one of the Tanjung Laur fishermen that was interviewed stated:

“I don’t want them to follow my struggles as a fisher.  I want them to become teachers or government officers.”  (OceanMimic, 2020)

– Tanjung Luar Fisherman

These sentiments are most likely shared across fishing communities similar to Tanjung Luar, and it is important to sustain this perspective when assessing how to create workable solutions to save sharks. I am a firm believer that the best tool in life is education, and the way it is administered has a massive impact on the way it is received. Change is not going to happen today, not tomorrow, and not in a single year, however this is not to deter conservationists from trying to push towards a more sustainable future.

Shark dive tourism alone generates at least $22 million USD per year in Indonesia, however in fishing communities such as Tanjung Luar eco-tourism is not a viable option at this moment in time. Nonetheless, this does not mean that it is impossible, in fact there are many success stories present in Indonesia all attempting to improve local livelihoods and establish marine protected areas.

Misool is an eco-resort in Raja Ampat that has successfully improved shark populations by establishing a marine protected area; even better, there are many local communities that work directly with the resort to help patrol the protected areas! Project HIU is another well-known project that aims to provide alternative incomes for shark fishermen; they believe that shark fishermen are future heroes in the realm of conservation as they are at the forefront of the possibility of change. Other projects such as Thresher Shark Indonesia and Elasmobranch Project Indonesia that have been launched by young Indonesian conservationists aim to improve local livelihoods whilst protecting the sharks around Indonesia.

There is potential for change in the future, and through the aforementioned projects it’s already happening! Creative approaches are necessary to generate alternatives for shark fishermen, and before local people can transition into a new sector the right training, education, and support is required. If you take away one message from this blog let it be that hope is one of the most powerful things, and in the conservation field it is so important that we maintain that sense of hope for change in the future. Change will happen over its own respective time scale, and that includes the shark fishing and shark finning industry. Remember, change starts with you.