Christopher Costello

The fishing industry contributes about $90 billion annually to the U.S. economy, and over one and a half million jobs for American workers. Many coastal communities depend on the fishing industry to sustain their local economies. On September 10th, The Hamilton Project released new papers and hosted a forum to explore opportunities for improving the economic prosperity and long-term sustainability of the U.S. fishing industry.

In this Hamilton Project discussion paper, Christopher Costello of the University of California, Santa Barbara proposes that certain fisheries conduct an analysis of alternative fishery management structures, including different forms of catch shares, to improve the economic value of U.S. fisheries.