The present structure and development scenarios of L. Peipsi-Pihkva fish resource use Markus Vetemaa 1, Aija Kosk 2, Margit Eero 1 & Toomas Saat 1 1 Estonian Marine Institute, University of Tartu, Vanemuise 46, Tartu, Estonia 2 Institute of Zoology and Hydrobiology, Estonian Agricultural University, Tartu, Estonia ; ; ;

Dynamics of landings of most important species

The value of commercial catch from L. Peipsi-Pihkva 84% from the total catch of the inland Estonian fisheries 15% from the total catch of Estonian fisheries (Atlantic fishery excluded).

Fish resource users: commercial fishermen household fishermen recreational fishermen

Commercial fishery

Commercial fishery: Total number of allowed gears is limited Fishing rights are allocated according to the historical usage principle From 2001 onwards 10% of all historical fishing rights is allocated through open auctions

Household fishery

Household fishery: Meant for coastal inhabitants to fish for their own use Inhabitants of the municipalities bordering Lake Peipsi-Pihkva have the rights to apply for up to 3 gill-nets to be used in the 1 km wide coastal zone

Recreational fishery

Recreational fishery: Allowed to everybody, including foreigners Number of licenses is not limited

The importance of different species in landings of commercial and household fishermen Total landings tonsTotal landings 37.4 tons

The importance of different species in the value of landings of commercial and household fishermen Total value 1776*10 3 EuroTotal value 20*10 3 Euro

The annual dynamics of the value of landings of commercial and household fishery

Commercial fishery: Segment is totally privatised Estimated total number of fishermen on the Estonian and 700 on the Russian side Number of owners of commercial fishing rights on the Estonian side in 2001 was 65; 36 of them fishing enterprises, 29 one-man enterprises

Number of allowed fishing gears and prices in Estonia

Dynamics of the catch value from L.Peipsi and average wage in Estonia In year 1996 the total value of L. Peipsi-Pihkva official catches corresponded to 672 Estonian average yearly salaries. The value of 2001 catches corresponded only to 398 average yearly salaries.

Household fishery: Total number of allowed gill-nets Number of household fishermen in 2001 approximately Most important species are perch and roach 13 % of total roach catches and 2% of perch catches in 2001 were taken by household fishery

The total number of recreational fishing licenses issued by the counties bordering L. Peipsi-Pihkva Recreational fishery:

The number of fishermen on ice during February 2002 (Monday-Sunday) Counted by the Estonian Border Guard

Characteristics of Estonian fishery on L. Peipsi in comparison to European countries Unlike in most European countries in Estonia recreational fishermen do not play important role in utilisation of fish resources of inland waters In Lake Peipsi-Pihkva the share of “catch sellers” in the group of recreational fishermen is high whereas in developed countries recreational fishermen fish almost exclusively for pleasure Today the recreational fishery of L. Peipsi-Pihkva is more “an employment of the last resort” than a leisure-time hobby

Generally it is accepted that recreational fishery provides higher income to the region for each used unit of fish resource than commercial fishery Majority of the recreational fishermen on L.Peipsi-Pihkva are local citizens, which means that they are not providing extra income to the region in form of usual “tourist business” Profit-oriented recreational fishery carried out mostly by local people can be evaluated as rather wasteful, because the fish resource taken now by thousands of “artisanal” fishermen could be harvested by significantly smaller number of people using more efficient equipment.

Conclusions: The fisheries of L. Peipsi-Pihkva is still quite old-fashioned in means of resource use, because the bulk of the catch is taken by commercial fishermen. However, the scenario of decreasing importance of the commercial segment in L. Peipsi-Pihkva fisheries can be predicted The use of fish resource by local inhabitants in means of household fishery can be evaluated as a positive element. Fishing for own use is a traditional part of the life-style of the region. The right to fish gives additional value to the whole region. The character of the recreational fishery is rather untypical being more an additional source of income for many coastal citizens than an activity carried out for pleasure.