Waterfront Land Use Change and Marine Resource Conditions: The Case of New Bedford and Fairhaven, Massachusetts

A major challenge in gauging long-term and cumulative impacts of fisheries management on coastal fishing communities is the lack of understanding of the interactions between changes in fish stocks and waterfront land uses. This study examines these interactions in the New Bedford/Fairhaven area using parcel level data and geographic information system (GIS) tools. Logistic regression models were used to assess the impact of changes in marine resource abundance on waterfront land uses. Although land-use decisions are influenced by many complex market and regulatory factors, our study detected a significant relationship between fish stock conditions and coastal land uses.