The objectives of management then are to ensure that the fish mortality rates and the size of the spawning stock biomass are maintained at desired levels. The ecosystem approach, also promoted by the 1995 UN Fish Stocks Agreement, is concerned with the relationship between fisheries and the wider ecosystems of which fish resources are a part.
No unified, agreed definition
There exists no unified, agreed definition of what an ecosystem-based approach to fisheries management means in practice, but the general idea is that the impacts of fishing on other parts of the ecosystem than target fish stocks, are to be taken into consideration when developing regulations for the fishery. Conversely, also impacts of environmental factors on a given fish stock – predation from other species, for instance - are to be considered. The 2002 Johannesburg Implementation Plan mandates countries to implement an ecosystem approach to the management of living marine resources by 2010.
The Integrated Oceans Management approach has emerged from concerns similar to those driving the ecosystem approach, but aims at reconciling various uses of the oceans with each other. As fisheries, aquaculture, tourism, transportation, military activity, and other uses of the ocean increase, they tend to become more competitive, confliction, and multiply stresses on ocean ecosystems. The need to reconcile various uses and avoid irreversible harm to the marine environment has instigated major policy development processes in a number of countries to this end.