ABSTRACT
Open access to fishing grounds contributes to the great increases in size of the fishing fleets. without limitations on access, investments in new vessels will continue to be made well after the sustainable catch has been reached. Once investments are made, fishermen will only leave the fisheries for new grounds where they can use the equipment; otherwise, they remain in the overfished grounds until forced out of business. Government assistance exacerbates this problem, creating a situation that can lead to stock collapse or prolong the period of recovery. Since most fishing grounds are already fully exploited, there literally is no place to go.
