Exploring perceptions to manage conflicts: The case of the European eel fishing moratorium in Southern Spain

This article presents results of a qualitative study on the opinions and attitudes of stakeholders of the areas affected by the moratorium on European eel (Anguilla anguilla) fishing (declared in 2010) in the Guadalquivir River marshlands of southern Spain. Results suggest that the stakeholders were sustaining different principles, criterions, and proposals that frequently conflicted because problems with mutual understanding. The usefulness of these results to manage this conflict is also discussed. This research allowed for improving communication, channeling demands of the different stakeholders, and searching for negotiated solutions to reduce the tensions that arose after the moratorium. Results have been shown to be especially relevant in this case where some stakeholders held strong and conflicting positions that made the dialogue almost impossible given that eel fishing was being carried out illegally.