The present paper deals with the problem of optimal harvesting of a fishery consisting of two competing fish species, each of which obeys the Gompertz law of growth. A dynamic reaction model is developed from a capital-theoretic view point, taking taxation as a control measure to regulate exploitation of the fishery. The existence as well as stability of the possible steady states is examined. Bionomic equilibrium of the system is determined and the optimal harvest policy is studied with the help of Pontryagin's Maximum Principle. The results are simulated numerically and sensitivity analysis of the optimal solution is carried out.
Nonselective harvesting, competing species, Gompertz law of growth, taxation, capital-theoretic analysis, bionomic equilibrium, optimal harvest policy, sensitivity analysis
