Abstract
Small-scale fisheries for the introduced sea snail (Rapana venosa) have seen booms followed by irreversible bust. This chapter focuses on the role of this fishery relative to poverty dynamics on the Turkish Black Sea coast, and explores how fishers cope with boom and bust, respectively. We consider poverty as a multi-faceted issue and analyze in some detail fishers’ income, social security, health, education, housing, as well as people’s own, culturally-informed perception of what constitutes poverty. Yet, our analysis aims beyond a descriptive account of poverty among fishers, and queries the epistemological status of the vicious circle model. Thus, we discuss how sea snail fishing has also constituted a way out of poverty; that it is uncertain whether overfishing can be blamed for the bust; that contextual factors, such as state welfare and agricultural policies, international organizations, and world economic dynamics, can have significant impact on poverty and wealth among the coastal population of the Black Sea coast of Turkey. The boom years of the sea snail fisheries clearly created a frontier situation inhibiting prospects of co-management between the state and communities of fishers. The observed lack of collective action among fishers and their concomitant incapacity to participate can be considered a dimension of poverty. Therefore, fishery development should not only go hand in hand with fishery management, but also with social policies aimed at reducing poverty and inequality.
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Notes
- 1.
With an HDI value of 0.806, Turkey ranks lower (79) on this composite scale than on the GDP/capita ranking (63) (UNDP 2009).
- 2.
Of Turkey’s total population in 2000, 23 million were considered rural and 44 million urban. In 2009, this had changed to 17.8 million rural, and 54.8 million urban (TURKSTAT 2010).
- 3.
These developments have, especially during the last 10 years, led social scientists in Turkey to apply theoretical perspectives from the international poverty literature to studies in Turkey. These studies include the relations between globalization and poverty (Şenses 2001); social policies in the face of poverty (Buğra 2008); quantitative and qualitative studies of migration and urban poverty (e.g., Işık and Pınarcıoğlu 2001); and comparative qualitative studies of the “condition of poverty” in different parts of Turkey (Erdoğan 2007). Case studies of poverty and poverty alleviation initiatives in Turkey are collected in a recent anthology (Oktik 2008). Parallel to this, the Turkish Statistical Institute (TURKSTAT), and the State Planning Organization have intensified data collection directed at providing relevant information on the degree and character of poverty in Turkey. International organizations (esp. the World Bank and UNDP), as well as national research institutions, have often relied on data from TURKSTAT to explore and analyze poverty in Turkey.
- 4.
Çarşıbaşı is the district in the province outside of the city that has the lowest unemployment rate (MEF 2008), and the highest proportion (13.12% in 2000 (SPO 2004a)) of industrial employment (MEF 2008, pp. XII-70). The service sector is also a major employer. The GNP/capita in Çarşıbaşı was 2,756 USD in 1996 (2,137 in the Province of Trabzon) (SAG 2005, p. 41); which was close to the national average (2,888 USD/capita), and made it the richest district in Trabzon after the city of Trabzon itself.
- 5.
SSK (Sosyal Sigortalar Kurumu) is the public social insurance foundation for all salaried employees outside of state civil servants. Bağ-Kur (Esnaf Ve SanatkâRlar Ve Diger Bagimsiz Çalisanlar Sosyal Sigortalar Kurumu) is a publicly administered social security foundation for the self-employed, including farmers and fishers.
- 6.
All personal names of informants referred to in this chapter are pseudonyms.
- 7.
During this period, he and his brother continuously set nets for whiting and delivered 31 landings to the auction in Trabzon. For the total of 412 k caught, they were paid 1,590 TL. Expenses: Fuel – 340, commission at auction – 92, transport to harbor and to auction –185, and wear and tear of nets – 150. One fishing trip lasts for approximately 3 h. In addition, comes travel time to the auction in Trabzon. This calculation has not taken into consideration investment and repair of the boat. It is worth noticing that, during this period, fish prices were relatively high since trawl fisheries had not yet started and because the Ramadan fell within this period (makes for higher demand of fish).
- 8.
Category 1–2 of the total of six categories in Turkish authorities’ categorization of agricultural lands, primarily based upon soil quality, degree of inclination, and exposure to erosion (SABEK 2005).
- 9.
Story extracted from conversations during participant observation in Terme, April 2009.
- 10.
“Kocareis,” usually middle-aged men mobilising men from own village/region to work as crew on purse seiners in Istanbul. They are remunerated with agreed-upon shares from the boat’s profit.
- 11.
While the percentage of fishers having green cards does not seem to have decreased, the percentage of green card holders among the overall population went down from 2006 to 2009 in the Province of Samsun from 26% to 16%, and in the District of Terme from 36% to 23% (MHT 2009).
- 12.
In 2000, only 83.6% (SPO 2004a) were literate (national average in 2000 was 87%). A local newspaper article stressed that the high schools in Terme are particularly unsuccessful in getting their students into university (only 26 out of 1127 graduates over the period of 2005–2007 (Samsun Halk Gazetesi, 10 March 2008)).
- 13.
Yakup Korkmaz’ story is based on informal conversation and response to questionnaire, Terme April 2009.
- 14.
In one processing plant, more than 50% of the processed sea snails were in the smallest of the seven size categories. Processed sea snails are sorted into the following size categories: 3L (Extra Large): 1–15 pcs/kg; LL (Extra Large): 15–20 pcs/kg; L (Large): 20–40 pcs/kg; M (Medium): 40–60 pcs/kg; S (Small): 60–80 pcs/kg; SS (Small): 80–120 pcs/kg; 3S (Small): 120 – up pcs/kg (Fora Food webpages: http://www.forafood.com/topshell.htm, accessed 08 Dec 2010).
- 15.
While the largest of the sea snail factories exported 988 t in 2007, export in 2008 had fallen to 422 t (Samsun Halk Gazetesi, 13 April 2009).
- 16.
The Kurds in the Çangallar village owned 6 boats in this 12 m-p boat class, but sold them all in 2008. All Romani sea snail fishers were trying to sell out in 2009. The number of multi-purpose boats in Yalı Mahallesi decreased by 15, from 2005 to 2009.
- 17.
The tightening of inspection seems to be partly a result of EU-pressure in the process of adapting Turkish fishery policy to the Common Fishery Policy in the EU. In practice, policing authority was transferred from the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs’ local Protection and Control branches to the Coast Guard under military command. They are better equipped and possibly less corrupt.
- 18.
From place 240 in 1996 to 436 in 2004 (out of more than 872 districts in Turkey) (SABEK 2005).
- 19.
Share of agriculture in Turkish GDP fell from 17% in 1990 to 12% in 2005, and share of economically active population engaged in agriculture has decreased from 47% in 1990 to 27% in 2006 (Çakmak and Eruygur 2008, p. 174).
- 20.
Internal dynamic toward younger age at reproduction, and smaller average size typical of introduced invasive species.
- 21.
After sea snail fisheries (and associated illegal trawling) discontinued in Trabzon, fishers report during conversations with us in 2008 and 2009 that catches of red mullet are again very good, after having been very meager during the 1990s and early 2000s.
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Acknowledgments
In addition to funding from the PovFish project, the research leading to these results has received funding from the European Community’s Seventh Framework Programme [FP7/2007–2013]: Knowledge-based Sustainable Management for Europe’s Seas (EC FP7 – grant 226675). The KnowSeas project is affiliated with LOICZ and LWEC. The authors want to thank research assistants Özlem Yeniay and Kayhan Ural for their very competent participation during fieldwork and data assessment. We are deeply indebted to all the informants who willingly shared time and information with us. This work would not have been possible without fishers, fisher wives, scientists, managers, factory owners, and others being so forthcoming. Thanks to them all!
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Knudsen, S., Koçak, H. (2011). Through Boom and Bust: Coping with Poverty in Sea Snail Fisheries on the Turkish Black Sea Coast. In: Jentoft, S., Eide, A. (eds) Poverty Mosaics: Realities and Prospects in Small-Scale Fisheries. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-007-1582-0_11
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