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The Environmental Protected Area of Anhatomirim (EPAA) (a kind of IUCN Protected Area Category VI) is located in the central coast of Santa Catarina State, a very important region for the shrimp trawl fishing at the South-Southeast Brazilian coast. Trawl fishing is one of the main livelihoods and concern for fisheries management at EPAA, not only because of the related environmental impacts, but also because of the conflicts with fishing groups that also depend on shrimp and fish, but use gillnets as their main fishing gears. The EPAA management plan was released in 2013, including, for the first time in Brazil, the use of bycatch reduction strategies (such as BRDs) as a fisheries management tool. In the following years, several workshops and demonstration hauls were organized in order to reach an agreement for decision-making among fishers, managers, and researchers on what bycatch reduction strategies should be undertaken.

Meeting with managers to evaluate the BRDs, in the context of the EPAA Management Plan

With the support from the REBYC Project, a compilation of all information gathered was made to subsequently support evaluation workshops with fishers and managers. Considering all BRDs so far tested, in 2017, a series of scientific experiments were conducted, also with support from REBYC Project, in order to test three different BRD configurations, with distinct levels of exclusion, simulating fishing situations of high, medium and low discards rates. Based on socioeconomic information and demonstrative hauls conducted in previous years, it was possible to realize that discard rates vary not only due to ecological conditions, but also because of socioeconomic factors. Several factors, such as the dynamics of the shrimp and bycatch supply chain, the level of use of bycatch for own consumption, availability of women for peeling the shrimp caught, the presence of collaborative networks for donating bycatch th for consumption and for sale), among others, influenced the discard rates.

One of the most effective BRDs so far developed and tested was a Nordmore Grid with 17mm space bar (G17), in a 18HP double-rigged trawler, which resulted in a statistically significant reduction of discards (-68.2%) and of the bycatch rate (-13.0%). Increases in catch of the seabob shrimp (although not statistically significant), on the other hand, was obtained with the use of a squared-mesh codend (13%) and a Nordmore Grid with 30mm space bar (G30), in 60HP engine double-rigged and a 22HP single-rigged trawlers, respectively. All these results have been presented to managers and fishers, demonstrating the overall results obtained since 2014, when experiments and demonstrations started. Fishers were very positive in relation to the possibility of having different BRD combinations, according to the bycatch rate. They agreed with the idea of using more effective BRDs when the bycatch rate was higher and dependence on bycatch was lower, contributing, therefore, to a more ecologically friend fishing gear. On the other hand, fishers were mostly contrary to the use of BRDs, when there were losses in white shrimp and byproduct catches, the seabob shrimp catch was low and the byproduct became, consequently one of the main outcomes from the fishery.

Managers also were also very positive about the results, especially for the opportunity to have an important dataset in support of decision-making. Not only the information, but the process of participatory research and outreach created an optimistic environment to support the implementation of the management plan. Notwithstanding, more engagement of managers is required in order to increase commitment and integration with management agenda. Fishers and managers agreed on working together to make definitive arrangements in support of reducing bycatch along the next years (2018-2019), using REBYC actions to foster its implementation in the management of the EPAA.