"Viable measures of social well-being and sustainability, including measures of vulnerability and resilience, are needed for coastal fishing communities. Although sustainable development indices have been created and implemented at national and regional levels, few are available at the local or community level, and even fewer address the social aspects of U .S. fisheries. We developed a suite of social indicators for use in fisheries social impact assessment (SIA). Data from more than 2,900 coastal communities in 19 states from Maine to Texas were used to create 14 social vulnerability and fishing dependence indices. Each index was developed using a factor analysis of secondary data obtained primarily from government sources, supplemented by a few private sources. The availability of these secondary data ensure replicability and feasibility under the time constraints usually available for completing social impact assessments for fishery management plans. Using cluster analysis, we selected a group of 20 communities to evaluate all 14 indices of social vulnerability. These indices can be used for cross-community and cross-regional comparisons, and will eventually be incorporated into social impact assessments of all U.S. marine fisheries"--Abstract.

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