Urban and Community Fisheries Programs: Development, Management, and Evaluation

Urban and Community Fisheries Programs: Development, Management, and Evaluation-A Summary

J. Wesley Neal and Richard T. Eades

doi: https://doi.org/10.47886/9781934874042.ch41

The increasing urbanization of U.S. society (USDC 2000) has complicated modern fisheries management. Most traditional fishing opportunities are located in rural areas (Schramm and Edwards 1994), yet most Americans reside in urban areas. Urban residents tend to be less likely to travel to rural resources, have more time constraints, and have a great many alternative recreational opportunities from which to choose. In the age of technology, the simple pleasures of being one with nature are all but lost. How do fisheries management agencies recruit new anglers or retain existing anglers from a populace that is disconnected from nature? The strategy has been to bring the resources to the populace in the form of urban or local community fishing lakes and streams, fishing clinics and derby events, educational programming, camps, and handson participatory activities.

In 1983, fisheries managers, educators, government entities, conservation groups, and researchers came together for a symposium to present available information about existing urban fishing programs and to present methods for creating fishing opportunities in urban environments (Allen 1984). The basic premise was simple—traditional approaches to fisheries management are not adequate for urban fishing programs. They recognized the importance of the urban angler and the growing need for urban and suburban opportunities, yet nearly a quarter-century elapsed before the primary players in urban and community fisheries again came together to discuss the state of their strategies.