With the war and the economy going bust, it�s easy to forget about the smaller things. The things that go bust not with instantaneous loss or blaring horns. But things that go quietly, silently, and almost unnoticed until it�s too late.
Things like our fish.
They don�t talk, and unless you have an aquarium or go fishing on the weekends, not many people give much thought to fish beyond �baked or grilled.� But the fish are important, and their numbers have been plummeting.
Overfishing
- Increased technology and competition among fisheries have lead to smaller subsequent catches since 1990.
- Currently over 50% of the worlds fish stocks are at maximum exploitation.
- 25% of the world fish stocks are overexploited or in a state of collapse.
Considering that roughly 16% of the worlds population gets their protein from fish, and the numerous jobs and lifestyles connected to fishing, the damage the fish stock can directly cause to humans through food and lifestyle loss is staggering, and there is no way to measure the damage the collapse of ocean ecosystems will have on land-based ecosystems.
What can be done
- Tighter enforcing of current regulations � and the introduction of new regulations � to prevent things as the deliberate mislabeling of fish species (often done to sell a cheaper species as one of their more expensive cousins).
- New technologies to reduce by catch, which kills off and wastes roughly 25% of fish ever caught by commercial vessels.
- Further research of commercial fish to determine to what point they can be fished without overexploitation.
- Write to your congressman about the problems of overfishing.
- Research the fish you eat, and ask the restaurants you eat at where they came from. There are a number of websites that list red-flagged fish, and several which can help you tell which type of fish is which � and whether or not you got what you ordered.
Useful Links
Overfishing.org
A comprehensive site about overfishing.
BBC News � �Only 50 Years Left� for Sea Fish
2007 news article by BBC. Stresses the interconnectivity of ocean life and the dangers of assuming that depleting one species will not badly affect the others.
Sea Choice and Guide to Ocean Friendly Seafood
Canadian and U.S. seafood guides on what fish are safe to eat both for yourself and the environment they were caught in. These include PDF printouts you can bring with you to restaurants.