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Primary prevention of fishing vessel disasters: Evaluation of a United States Coast Guard policy intervention

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Title Primary prevention of fishing vessel disasters: Evaluation of a United States Coast Guard policy intervention
Names Lucas, Devin L. (creator)
Kincl, Laurel D. (creator)
Bovbjerg, Viktor E. (creator)
Branscum, Adam J. (creator)
Lincoln, Jennifer M. (creator)
Date Issued 2014-12 (iso8601)
Note To the best of our knowledge, one or more authors of this paper were federal employees when contributing to this work. This is the publisher’s final pdf. The published article is copyrighted by Elsevier and can be found at: http://www.journals.elsevier.com/marine-policy.
Abstract Primary injury prevention strategies are needed to improve worker safety in the fishing industry by
reducing the occurrence of vessel disasters. In 2006, the United States Coast Guard (USCG) implemented
a novel safety policy intervention for two fleets of freezer-trawlers and freezer-longliners in Alaska. The
Alternate Compliance and Safety Agreement (ACSA) set standards for vessel stability, watertight integrity,
hull condition, and other critical vessel components. To determine if ACSA has been an effective primary
prevention intervention for improving safety in the fishing industry, a longitudinal study was conducted
using retrospective data on vessel casualties during 2003–2012. On both types of vessels, reported rates
of serious vessel casualties decreased after the vessels reached compliance with ACSA requirements,
suggesting that ACSA has had a positive effect on vessel safety in the freezer-trawl and freezer-longline
fleets. These results support the premise that primary prevention policies can contribute to worker
safety by reducing the occurrence of vessel disasters. Future USCG safety policies should be patterned
after ACSA and improved by following the recommendations outlined in this study.
Genre Article
Topic Fishing vessel disasters
Identifier Lucas, D. L., Kincl, L. D., Bovbjerg, V. E., Branscum, A. J., & Lincoln, J. M. (2014). Primary prevention of fishing vessel disasters: Evaluation of a United States Coast Guard policy intervention. Marine Policy, 50, 67-73. doi:10.1016/j.marpol.2014.05.017

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