LE3 .A278 2023

2023

López-Gutiérrez, Juan Carlos
Groszko, Wayne

Acadia University

Bachelor of Science

Honours

Biology

Biology

The objective of this study is to identify common perspectives and barriers of Nova Scotia lobster harvesters on the topic of lobster fleet decarbonization. The study is designed to help Canada reach its 2050 goal of zero-net emissions by promoting clean, sustainable technology and was administered via survey to 94 Nova Scotian lobster harvesters. Variables such as age, role aboard the vessel, lobster fishing area worked and years in the industry were compared using descriptive analyses and Pearson correlation tests. Questions regarding the lobster harvester's total willingness to adapt fishing methods of the survey were converted to a numerical scale. Cronbach’s alpha was determined (0.80) to ensure internal consistency. The final question of the survey was open-ended and gathered qualitative data that was analyzed by performing a top-down coding technique. The main findings of the study suggest that lobster fishing areas have a varied willingness to adapt fishing methods, based on their location. It was also found that age does not play a big role in the total willingness of lobster harvesters. Previous knowledge of climate change effects on the lobster harvesting industry is lacking. The main physical barriers that were identified included financial concerns, safety issues, additional labour and battery concerns. The main emotional barriers that were identified were comfortability, mistrust, and unreliability of alternative fuel vessels. This study suggests that an improvement in climate change knowledge, specifically the effects of climate change on the lobster harvesting industry to Nova Scotia lobster harvesters may ease the transition to decarbonized lobster fleets.

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https://scholar.acadiau.ca/islandora/object/theses:4023