Towards the optimal management of the Northeast Arctic cod fishery

The objectives pursued by governments managing fisheries may include maximizing profits, minimizing the impact on the marine ecosystem, or securing employment, which all require adjusting the composition of the fishing fleet. We develop a management plan that can be adapted to those objectives and allows the regulator to compare the long-run profits between the various management options. We apply the model to the case of Northeast Arctic cod, and estimate the cost and harvesting functions of various vessel types, the demand function, and a biological model to provide key insights regarding the optimal management of this valuable fish species.