The effects of different strategic variables in non-cooperative fisheries games

Abstract

In this paper we use stock size, harvest quantity and fishing effort, respectively, as strategic variables. We model a two agent (nations) non-cooperative fishery game, where the agents harvest a common fish stock. The planning horizon is infinite. The model is solved successively using one instrument at a time as the strategic variable in the game. The net present values of fishing and the escapement stock level from the three different models are compared with each other to show how the choice of variables affects the results. The choice of strategic variable is not a trivial one, as the results are shown to be sensitive to the discounting, the stock rate of growth, and the assumptions about the distribution of the fish in response to being harvested.