Oceans, the beautiful blue gems of our world, full of bountiful resources. Well, used to be before humans slowly over fished several fish and shellfish species. Over fishing like this causes many problems from ecological issues to social issues.
Americans are eating more fish, increasing the demand for fish. As shown by the department of agriculture’s Per Capita Consumption of Major Food Commodities: 1980 to 2010, the average person in 1980 ate 12.4 pounds of fish per year and increased to 15.8 in 2010 (Department). It doesn’t seem that much of an increase but if you would take into account the number of people in the US it’s a significant increase. This increase in demand causes an incredible strain on the suppliers. As a result, it causes over fishing of many species. The effects of over fishing are much more diverse.
It disrupts the ecological balance of the region. An example of this is in an article in the National Geographic written by Warne Kennedy showing how over fishing of spiny rock lobster and snapper in the waters near an island in New Zealand called Goat Island caused the population of a species of sea urchin to explode. As a result, the local reefs and kelp fields were severely damaged, and when fishing there was stopped the sea urchin numbers went back to normal and the kelp grew back (Kennedy 70-89). See when the predators (spiny rock lobster and snapper) population drops, it causes its preys (sea urchins) population to increase. When that happens, the needs of the prey’s population increase causing damage to what ever is below it in the food chain.
One of the only good things to come out of this is movements to create marine reserves. These reserves are off limits to fishing, so scientists can see the differe...
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... will have to carry around filing cabinets full of regulation documents, and sea urchins will eat all the kelp and take over the world. It is not all bad though, we will at least have more reserves that will let us see what the seas could be.
Works Cited
Department of Agriculture. "Per Capita Consumption Of Major Food Commodities: 1980 To 2010 [Selected Years]." ProQuest Statistical Abstract of the U.S. 2014 Online Edition. Ed. ProQuest, 2014. Web: ProQuest Statistical Abstract 02/14
Warne, Kennedy. "Global Fish Crisis: Blue Haven." National Geographic Vol. 211, No. 4. April 2007: 70-89. SIRS Issues Researcher. Web. 25 Feb. 2014.
Robbins, Michael W. "The Fate of the Ocean: The Catch." Mother Jones Vol. 31, No. 2. March/April 2006: 49+. SIRS Issues Researcher. Web. 25 Feb. 2014.
"Global Consequences of Overfishing." Fisheries and Oceans Canada. Web. 05 Mar. 2014.
In this entertaining, search into global fish hatcheries, New York Times writer Paul Greenberg investigates our historical connection with the ever changing ocean and the wild fish within it. In the beginning of the book Paul is telling his childhood fishing stories to his friends, that night Paul discovers that that four fish dominate the world’s seafood markets in which are salmon, tuna, cod, and bass. He tries to figure out why this is and the only logical answer he could come up with is that four epochal shifts caused theses wild fish population to diminish. History shows that four epochal shifts happen within fifteen years causing certain fish species populations to diminish. He discovers for each of the four fish why this happened to
Overfishing may have some benefits to it, but does it out way the negatives? By fulfilling our demand we can wipe out our whole oceans! Not just the fish, but water mammals too. Sure it can create jobs, but as what cost? It can help bring up our economy, but at the same time it can bring it down with many fish companies closing down due to lack of profit. Fish is a great source of nutrients, but too much can kill you! In other words, fish can be both beneficial and harmful to not only humans, but everyone and everything surrounding fish. There are three things people can do to help with overfishing, the first thing is to be aware of what you are eating. Is the fish on the fear of extinction list? Also asking yourself is the fish you’re about to eat really the fish you intend to eat? Another thing to ask is, was it shipped over seas? If it was it doesn’t benefit anyone, it won’t help the economy or you. Many fish shipped from a long ways creates pollution and may have lost its nutrients value from the long voyage. One last thing to do is if you see a sewer with a sign leading to the ocean, try not to leave trash near it, or better yet don’t litter at all! All the litter left out on streets or near sewers can cause pollution in oceans, lakes, and rivers which is very harmful for marine life. You can still enjoy fish, but not at such a high demand as
Simply, overfishing depletes fish stocks. The consumer demand for fish has risen dramatically over the past decade or so, so much that fisheries are designing new and innovate ways to catch more fish, and at a faster rate to meet consumer demands. What fisheries do not realize, though, is that their removal of fish from the oceans is too great and far too fast for new fish stocks to be made. So, no mating is occurring, leaving the oceans emptier each day. If this rate continues, all fish in the ocean will be almost non-existent. Already, we are experiencing a major decline in fish population: "In 2003, a scientific report estimated that industrial fishing had reduced the number of large ocean fish to just 10 percent of their pre-industrial population. "(par.6).Overfishing brings the main consequence of decrease in the fish population. People rely on fish for survival (in some countries, fish is their only source of food), and they rely on marine life for products (goods like lipstick, petroleum jelly, make-up, etc.)
Major exploration may harm the environment due to how we exploit resources. According to Philippe Cousteau’s commentary, he states that “the world has fished, mined and trafficked the ocean’s resources to a point where we are actually seeing dramatic changes that are seriously impacting today’s generations” (70). This emphasizes that attempting major exploration has an impact in our environment. Additionally, Elisabeth Rosenthal’s “Stinging Tentacles Offer Hint of Oceans’ Decline” gives us an idea how pollution affects the climate. Dr. Josep-MarÍa Gili
Ocean Pollution is a serious issue in today's global politics. The delicate balance of Earth's ecosystem is put in jeopardy when the ocean is not clean. Problem evolving from ocean pollution directly harm marine life and indirectly affect human health and the Earth's many valuable resources. Ocean Pollution is a Broad term that encpompasses any and all foregin matter that directly or indirectly makes its way into the ocean. This includes everything from the extreme: oil spills, Toxic Waste dumping and industrial dumping-- to the small scael: human activities and basic carelessness. Because the oceans and all other water bodies are invariably, somehow connected, and because they account for 3/4 of the Earth's surface, they are an ideal method of transportation for pollution, allowing the rapid spread of seemingly far away toxins into a river near you! It is increasingly important that we educate ourselves as to what, exactly, ocean pollution is, so that we can identify the causes at their source and take action in small and large ways, and hopefully, prevent this terrible form of pollution from getting any worse than it is today.
Overfishing can lead to sea creatures becoming extinct. This can ruin an entire food chain and continues
Overfishing is defined as a form of overexploitation where fish stocks are brought down to unacceptable levels. In the UN Food and Agriculture Organization’s 2 yearly report (SOFIA), it states how over half of the fish stocks, worldwide, are fully exploited. Other research has shown it only takes 10-15 years of industrial fishing to obliterate a tenth of the intended species. Overfishing causes a ripple effect that hurts the entire ecosystem. The balance of the chain depends largely on the interaction between the predator and the prey.
Overfishing is a harmful practice, that will eventually lead to the collapse of aquatic ecosystems, if it’s not dealt with promptly. Overfishing emerges from the combination of our over consumptive society mixed with the great profits that come from hauling in a good catch. The consumers demand for fish in Japan seems to be at an increasingly high rate due to the enjoyment and cultural values that arise from sushi and other traditional dishes involving seafood. Approximately 23 percent of Japan’s protein intake comes from the ocean, and as a nation consumes 7.5 million tonnes of seafood annually. CITATION
overfishing is a real problem and needs to be fixed. Some people may ask how
"Oceans." Opposing Viewpoints Online Collection. Detroit: Gale, 2014. Opposing Viewpoints in Context. Web. 8 May 2014.
There are quite a few types of unsustainable fishing practices, some of which are dynamite fishing, electro-fishing, cyanide fishing and bottom trawling. Dynamite fishing is the act of killing a number of fish at once with explosives. These bombs kill some wish and hurt the others destroying their homes and the places they live in. This type of fishing can also hurt the people that are fishing. It is illegal in a number of places but is still practiced very commonly. Electrofishing uses electricity to stun fish. It is mainly used to examine fish and after done examining these fish they are put back into the water. This doesn’t exactly kill the fish but it does injure some parts of their body like their spine and also bleeding of their gills. Cyanide fishing is fishing for aquariums using a chemical called cyanide to st...
Oceans are such so vast that people underestimate the impact their actions —seeming so insignificant— have on them. Humans have by and large taken the oceans for granted; not considering how important a healthy ocean is to our survival. A popular mind-set is that the oceans are a bottomless supply of fish, natural resources, and an infinite waste dump. There are myriad reasons why the oceans should be saved and the most obvious one is marine life. With 71% of the Earth being covered by water, it is obvious that sea creatures are predominant form of life, making up 80% of the species of life on Earth. However, as important as marine life is, that is not the only reason why saving the oceans is crucial. The ocean floor provides natural resources such as, oil, natural gas, petroleum, minerals, medications, and ingredients for foods and products. The economic benefits of the oceans are huge and significant, as well. Fishing and fish products have provided employment to 38 million people and have generated about $124 billion in economic benefits. However, oceans are on the verge of crisis, marine life, natural resources, transportation, the economy, and important ingredients are at risk due to overfishing, pollution, and acidification. Thus, in this essay I will argue that, oceans are not impervious to human activity and threatening the health of the ocean threatens the health of humanity, since oceans key to our survival.
Did you know that more than 90 percent of all organisms that have ever lived on Earth are extinct? According to Pandey, the author of Humans Pushing Marine Life toward ‘Major Extinction’, nearly 10,000 species go extinct each year, and this rate is estimated to be 1,000 times higher than the natural extinction rate (1). Human beings are causing irreversible damage to the oceans and their wildlife, which is being led by two major reasons: Commercial fishing or over-fishing, which damaged the marine environment and caused a loss in the marine life diversity, and pollution, which is a primary way of the extinction causes that drastically modifies the marine life habitat. As a result of the commercial fishing and pollution, many of the marine species will start disappearing of the oceans. Briggs emphasizes that over-fishing “has induced population collapses in many species. So instead of having less than a hundred species at risk, as was the case some 30-40 years ago, there are now a thousand or more (10).”
There is a big problem going on in our oceans and waterways all around the world, this problem is commercial fishing. Although there are many good commercial fishing regulations already in place, they need to be improved because there is still an extreme impact on endangered species and current practices are still killing untargeted populations. This problem has been going on for many years and it’s time to do something about it for good. There are many laws already in place regulating commercial fishing but not enough. Endangered species need to be saved, before they are gone for good.
Bowermaster, Jon. Oceans: The Threats to Our Seas and What You Can Do to Turn the Tide: A Participant Media Guide. New York: PublicAffairs, 2010. Print.