Stickers - 11-2-2006 at 07:41 PM
Very scary article from the BBC about depletion of all the fish in the sea in 50 years.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/6108414.stm
Von - 11-2-2006 at 07:44 PM
That sucks 4 my grandkids Ill be the last of the mohicans by then ha? I read
that too....
Hook - 11-3-2006 at 10:18 AM
This study made the front page of the LA Times today. While I agree with most of its contentions, I found it unfortunate that it didnt differentiate
sportfishing from commercial fishing in the category of "overfishing". Maybe the report does, but certainly not the Times' overview (what a surprise!)
Sportfishing can be managed to great effect; the inherent money in commercial fishing makes it much more difficult. Easy to bribe officials to look
the other way in many countries.
Sound like any country you know.........?
Bajamatic - 11-3-2006 at 10:27 AM
http://www.aboutseafood.com/media/facts_statistics_detail~id...
some intersting stats here, if nothing esle points out the difficult road ahead
spike - 11-3-2006 at 10:42 AM
This kind of thing can happen. A case in point is the total collapse of the cod off the Atlantic coast and the Grand Banks. It has been about 5 years
since the ban on cod fishing and they show no signs of a recovery. They seem to have reached the point of a non sustaining population.
It is a sad state of affairs, when you consider that 400 years ago the exploerers reported sticking a bucket in the ocean and coming up full of cod.
Hopefully this does not happen in other areas of the world, in particular the Sea of Cortez! Ithink you're right about the sport fishing, but I don't
think it will matter in the end, as the nations that do the over fishing could care less.
Spike
Commercial v.s. Sport fishing
Summanus - 11-3-2006 at 10:51 AM
The value of a sport-caught fish far exceeds the value of a commercial-caught fish..this we all know. Most sports anglers have known this
intuitively, but many of us would be surprised to learn the vast difference in economic benefit from each industry.
For instance, in California, the recreational fishery created more than $5 billion in personal income and created 154,000 jobs compared to $701
million and 21,000 jobs from the commercial fishing industry.
All nations know these facts, but few will do anything about them. What's the answer? I sure wish I knew.
Don Alley - 11-3-2006 at 10:54 AM
Closed reserves, shorter seasons, size limits, bag limits and gear restrictions can all result in sustainable fisheries, but only if governments have
the will to enact proper regulations, and then enforce them.
However, I have seen nothing that justifies the cult-like following for the "closed reserve" fad touted in this study, other than the fact that it
bans fishing, pleasing the anti fishing crowd, and it avoids confronting the fishing industry's overfishing of pelagic (migratory) species. Unless
other management steps are taken, reserves will not save migratory fish from industrial slaughter when they leave the reserves, like tuna, dorado,
marlin...The strong implication that these critical fisheries can be protected with closed reserves defies logic.
Mexitron - 11-3-2006 at 11:28 AM
And farm-raised fish is fed with something like ten times its weight in wild fish stocks.
Perhaps this a solution. Gonna turn a lotta cowboys and fisherman into white coated lab workers:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/genes/article/0,2763,1548451,00.ht...
"According to researchers, meat grown in laboratories would be more environmentally friendly and could be tailored to be healthier than farm-reared
meat by controlling its nutrient content and screening it for food-borne diseases.
Vegetarians might also be tempted because the cells needed to grow chunks of meat can be taken without harming the donor animal.
Experiments for Nasa, the US space agency, have already shown that morsels of edible fish can be grown in petri dishes, though no one has yet eaten
the food."
BBC?...believable source? I wonder.
Summanus - 11-3-2006 at 11:40 AM
I think the fish population concerns and problems in today's oceans are very real.
Unfortunately for listed report, the BBC is no longer the respected source it once was...like back during WWII when it was right up there with
reliables like Winston Churchill. I regret to say that I would take with a large grain of salt ALL of the facts the BBC News would put out today.
Again, I will say that the problem is there..and loving the sea as we all do, we will all strive to do something about saving what fish we have left
for future generations.
But let's get somebody other than the BBC to present the facts.
Cincodemayo - 11-3-2006 at 11:42 AM
Reminds me of all the Japanese Longliners and their satellite boats that were raping the Sea of Cortez in the 80's and 90's. They decimated their own
seas and local fishstocks off Japan so they go out and screw up other countries. They have continued whaling saying it's for scientific research...
Yeah right....Arigato.
spike - 11-3-2006 at 12:04 PM
The BBC was reporting on the original article which will run in the journal "Science", so even if we have to view the BBC with the same jaundiced view
as with most media, the report did not originate with them.
Spike
Summanus - 11-3-2006 at 12:20 PM
good enough, spike...that helps the credibility....thanks.
spike - 11-3-2006 at 01:30 PM
Summanus.
Those are amazing stats on the sport fishing in California. Have you ever seen anything in the same comparisons in the countries that seem to do the
most commercial fishing,ie: Spain, Portugal, Japan..... Governments have got to wake up to these facts.
Spike
fishing regulations vs. marine preserves
Skipjack Joe - 11-3-2006 at 04:33 PM
The front page of our Chronicle had a similar article. It talked about this study but also tried to relate it to our California fisheries. The point I
found interesting is that it stated that many of the rockfish stocks are rebounding in our state due to the greater fishing restrictions. These
restrictions now include 6 months out of the year (you can't start fishing until July I believe) and some species are totally off limits (Boccacio is
one).
Since I am not a big fan of these marine preserves that many are touting as the only way to save the fisheries, I was really pleasantly surprised to
read this. I have gone to meetings here where these preserves are being rammed down our throats and I have always felt that there are other ways to
resuscitate our fisheries. Sure there was a lot of finger pointing between the sports guys and the commercial people. If DF&G had done it's job
all along and had an accurate evaluation of the fishing stocks and had realistic limits we would never have gotten ourselves into this mess. But
things are on the mend in California I believe.
Also, the sportfishing public is only starting to embrace catch and release. Once the public embraces this more (and that day will come) things will
improve a lot.
Baja on the other hand is totally out of hand. No understanding of fish stocks. Totally unreleastic fish limits. People who pay no attention to fish
limits (like that idiot I met who kept 30 yellows a day and was guided to them each morning).
It's sad to witness this. Such a beautiful peninsula. So much natural wealth ...