Port Lameron Lobster Fishery II, Nova Scotia, Canada

Since this original case, much of the Atlantic Canadian fisheries have been reduced to a fraction of historical levels. In Port Lameron, very few harvesters fish for groundfish (cod, haddock, pollock, hake), swordfish, or tuna. The collapse of the Codfishery has been attributed to many issues, including scientific uncertainty, government policies to increase employment in the area, and subsidies to increase fishing capacity, and the inability of enforcement to stop foreign trawlers from overfishing within the 200 mile economic zone. In the 1980s, the government set fish quotas for the large-scale fleets, and in the 1990s, these quotas were extended to the small-scale fleets, including Port Lameron, including fixed gear (longline and handlining). 

While there used to be a system of zoning for catching different species of inshore fish, these rules do not seem to prevail today, because there are no fish to zone for. Currently the depletion of groundfish stocks seem most pronounced on the inshore grounds. This may be due to increased predation from grey seals, parasatism caused by increased grey seal populations, or a lack of recruitment due to low populations on the offshore grounds. Nevertheless, the collective action arrangements surrounding finfish in Port Lameron are largely non-existent today.While the harvesting of lobsters is sustainable, this fishery is experience a curse of abundance, combined with high dependency on lobsters due to the decline of groundfish (i.e., cod, hake, pollock, haddock) and the concentration of quota. This has led many harvesters to increase their pressure on lobster stocks. The current regulatory framework has been set up for increasing larval recruitment, but does not have institutions to deal with high abundances. In addition, the lack of trust in the public infrastructure providers and lack of participation from resource users leaves the collective action arena regarding harvesting institutions in a rigid and vulnerable state.