3 SPC Beche-de-mer Information Bulletin #35 – March 2015 Introduction With stocks and catches dwindling fast in most Pacific islands over the last 20 years or so, govern- ments have started taking emergency action and reviewing their sea-cucumber management poli- cies (Pakoa and Bertram 2013). Standard regula- tions on small-scale sea cucumber fisheries cover minimum catch sizes per species to reduce juvenile and sub-adult mortality rates; bans on destructive methods and certain types of gear, such as scuba- diving equipment; fishing and transport licens- ing; processing and exports; and national overall or species-specific quotas (FAO 2012, 2013). As in other tropical areas, however, effectively applying and enforcing these regulations in the Pacific is very difficult and countries are increasingly using mora- toria as a last resort (Purcell et al. 2013). National regulations also often overlap local practices based on territorial fishing rights and customary restric- tions. Setting aside certain reef areas has, therefore, proved to be one of the most easily accepted restric- tions socially and the one best suited to modern regulations, such as rotational management and limited fishing seasons (Aswani 2005; Léopold et al. 2013a). Harmonising both governance levels is a major challenge towards making small-scale coastal fishery management more effective. Spatial sea cucumber management in Vanuatu and New Caledonia Marc Léopold 1,2, *, Jayven Ham 2 , Rocky Kaku 2 , Sompert Gereva 2 , Jason Raubani 2 and Zacharie Moenteapo 3 Abstract Many small-scale sea cucumber fisheries have been declining worldwide at an alarming rate as a result of rapid overharvesting and inefficient management. This paper presents the new common management strat- egy for Vanuatu and New Caledonia’s Northern Province, which was defined as part of an experimental initiative launched in 2008 in 15 small single- and multiple-species pilot fisheries. The results highlighted four main efficiency factors: (i) spatial management and shared governance of fisheries; (ii) defining total allowable catches (TACs) per species and area, using stock biomass; (iii) implementing TAC-based opera- tional spatial management; and (iv) the technical and financial capacities that managing departments need to acquire. Each of these factors was analysed based on the examples examined, and the study shed con- siderable light on the type of approach that needs to be developed for restoring sea cucumber stocks and improving the management of related small-scale fisheries. The experiment could be tried out in the various Pacific social and political contexts, as the outcomes were encouraging. If effective fisheries regulations are to be defined and implemented, therefore, space and time scales, biological and fisheries data and appropriate gov- ernance methods must be determined. As sea cucumber fisheries could well collapse and biologi- cal and environmental information on harvested species is lacking, judicious management strategies need to be developed in order to give a new lease of life to both the species and the industry. This is the backdrop to the research conducted into the spatial management of sea cucumbers in Vanuatu and New Caledonia (Léopold et al. 2013b,c; Léopold 2014). Although these countries are both minimal contribu- tors to worldwide beche-de-mer exports (FAO 2008; Conand et al. 2014; Affaires Maritimes de Nouvelle- Calédonie, pers. com.), their fishing industries are different. Vanuatu has depleted its stocks, despite introducing minimum catch sizes and a total allow- able catch (TAC) of 26 export tonnes in 2005, fol- lowing peak production years in 1992 and 1994 of nearly 70 t of exported beche-de-mer annually. A national moratorium was introduced from 2008 to 2013 so the stock could recover and a five-year national management plan was launched in 2015, after an experimental phase in 2014 (see this paper). In New Caledonia, beche-de-mer exports appear to have stabilised at 20–40 t year -1 compared to 94 t in 1 Institut de Recherche pour le Développement (IRD), UMR 9220 ENTROPIE - LABEX CORAIL, BP A5, 98848 Noumea Cedex, New Caledonia 2 Fisheries Department of Vanuatu, Private Bag 9045, Port-Vila, Vanuatu 3 Province Nord, Service milieux et ressources naturels, BP 41, 98860 Koné, New Caledonia * Corresponding author: marc.leopold@ird.fr