Assessing The Influence of Coastal Tourism on Fisheries and Fishing Communities in Goa

Goa’s fisheries sector, a cornerstone of its coastal economy and cultural identity, faces transformativepressures from the state’s booming tourism industry. This study employs a mixed-methods approach to quantifythe interplay between tourism growth and fisheries sustainability, leveraging two decades of data from theDirectorate of Fisheries, Goa, alongside tourism metrics and environmental reports. Through regressionanalysis, time-series decomposition, and spatial correlation, we identify:A positive but unsustainable correlation (R² = 0.65, *p* < 0.01) between tourist arrivals and aggregate fishlandings, masking declining catch-per-unit-effort (CPUE) for high-value species (Scomberomorus commerson,Pampus argenteus).Socioeconomic shifts, including labor migration from fishing to tourism-linked activities (e.g., charters,seafood restaurants), driven by higher wage elasticity (β = 0.42) in tourism sectors.Environmental externalities, notably plastic pollution (GSPCB data: +300% coastal waste since 2010) andhabitat degradation from unregulated coastal development. Policy recommendations advocate for zoned marinespatial planning, eco-certification of seafood, and fisher-tourism cooperatives to reconcile economic growthwith ecological resilience.