Fisheries Climate Survey Report FINAL - Flipbook - Page 7
EXPOSURE TO
CLIMATE CHANGE
Survey respondents were asked what effect, if any, they believe ocean warming is having on specific fisheries.
Most respondents that target American lobster, scallop, Atlantic cod, pollock, yellowtail flounder, winter
flounder, red hake, summer flounder, and striped bass think these species are being negatively impacted by
warming waters (Figure 2). Most survey respondents targeting Atlantic herring, haddock, Atlantic halibut,
white hake, dabs, gray sole, windowpane flounder, Acadian redfish, monkfish, skates, whiting, clams, squid, and
dogfish think that climate change is having no effect on these species (Figure 2). The only species identified by
respondents as being positively impacted by warming ocean temperatures were menhaden, scup, and black
sea bass (Figure 2). These perceptions of the effect of ocean warming on their target fisheries was used to
assess an individual’s exposure to the impacts of climate change in the overall vulnerability indices (below).
Figure 2. Survey respondents’ perceptions of the impact of climate change on the fisheries they target.
These data were used to evaluate an individual’s exposure to climate change in the vulnerability indices.
7