Effectively Communicating with Subsistence Fish Consumers to Reduce Exposure to Contaminants
Date
2020-04-24
Advisors
Shapiro-Garza, Dr. Elizabeth
Kastleman, Catherine
Repository Usage Stats
443
views
views
359
downloads
downloads
Abstract
Economic factors and cultural values influence individual choices to catch local fish
as an important supplement to their diet. This practice is commonly referred to as
subsistence fishing. We believe the term “fishing for food” is more appropriate, given
the mosaic of values and motivations that underlie the practice. While fishing for
food is an affordable and accessible way to acquire a nutritional food source, chemical
contaminants from the environment can build up in certain species of fish. Consumption
of fish that contain chemical contaminants may harm human health. Fishing for food
creates environmental justice concerns because low income and minority communities
generally depend on wild caught fish in different ways and to a greater extent than
society as a whole and are therefore likely to be disproportionately exposed to the
harmful contaminants. The practice of fishing for food is informal, and fishers have
a wealth of specialized local knowledge, which they frequently share amongst themselves.
The informality of the practice and centrality of local, specialized knowledge means
that little information is available on people who fish for food. Our project addresses
this data gap in eastern North Carolina through a combination of intercept surveys,
key actor interviews, and participant observations that allow us to tap the local
knowledge and community experiences necessary for deepening our understanding of fishing
for food. This methodology allows us to examine the behaviors, motivations, and values
of people fishing for food along the lower Cape Fear River in North Carolina, a waterway
that is heavily impaired by pollution. Our findings provide a glimpse into the behaviors,
motivations, and values of those fishing for food in this area that will be used to
inform an ongoing, local community-based social marketing campaign. This campaign
endeavors to provide community relevant information and actionable alternatives that
help individuals who fish for food avoid exposure to chemical contaminants. More generally
our research demonstrates how community-based research approaches can be used to inform
the development of locally relevant public health initiatives that address the unique
behaviors, values, and contexts of impacted communities.
Type
Master's projectSubject
fishingsubsistence
community-based environmental management
Cape Fear River
chemical contaminants
environmental justice
Permalink
https://hdl.handle.net/10161/20557Citation
Dietz, Martin; & Yang, Steven (2020). Effectively Communicating with Subsistence Fish Consumers to Reduce Exposure to Contaminants.
Master's project, Duke University. Retrieved from https://hdl.handle.net/10161/20557.Collections
More Info
Show full item record
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.
Rights for Collection: Nicholas School of the Environment
Works are deposited here by their authors, and represent their research and opinions, not that of Duke University. Some materials and descriptions may include offensive content. More info