An application of optimal control to the effective utilization of a renewable resource

Abstract

The study explores the optimal harvesting of renewable resources like fisheries. The fish biomass dynamics is described by a nonlinear growth model that maximizes the total net revenue whilst taking into consideration the sustainable and effective utilization of the resource. In addition, stability dynamics of the model is assessed through bifurcation analysis. Pontryagin’s maximum principle is used to derive the optimality system and characterize the optimal control. A numeric iterative method employing the fourth order Runge-Kutta scheme facilitates the solution of the optimality system. The simulation results obtained are then discussed. The results show that the sum of the maximum allowable harvest and the final biomass level must not exceed the maximum sustainable yield (MSY)