More and more people have been introduced to a very dangerous practice called shark-finning. Even the people who are aware of the harmful effects they bring still continue on doing it. People are afraid of sharks due to their fierce appearance and the bad publicity they get such as the movies wherein sharks attack humans. Only about 5 people are killed by sharks every year. In fact, vending machines has a higher death rate of 13, while ants can kill about 30 people annually. Sharks are very beneficial to us, why do people keep on harming them? Why is shark-finning so important? Shark-finning gives both advantages and disadvantages economically, politically, cultural, societal, and environmental. It is important to recognize the significance of shark finning and its relationship with the government and how it affects a country’s economic state, how it relates to culture, and to know if it benefits or harms the environment.
Economic Factors determine the production and distribution of goods and the use of income and wealth. What economic factors relate to shark finning and shark products? Most countries are engaged in Shark fin trade. By 2008, the world’s top exporters of shark fins are Spain, Singapore, Taiwan, Indonesia, and United Arab Emirates who exports them to Hong Kong. Most countries have been introduced to a really popular dish called Shark fin soup is considered a traditional delicacy in China. The Chinese beliefs have driven demand for shark fin soup. They are one of the most expensive seafood products in the world, which can cost up to 500 euros or $676 per kilogram. A whale shark pectoral fin can be sold for up to $100,000 US dollars, while a Basking Shark pectoral fin can cost up to $250,000 US dollars. It serves the ...
... middle of paper ...
...fin soup.
In conclusion, Shark finning is more of a disadvantage. The shark fin trade and shark finning contributes billions of money, but in exchange, they eliminate millions of sharks. They great dame our eco-system, and the practice is un-monitored. Some Asian cultures may think that they are beneficial to our health, however they do not contain nutritional value and may even be harmful to us. In my opinion, it is not morally right to kill sharks, or any other species, especially millions and billions of them. The best solution would be to end this method altogether.
Works Cited
http://www.stopsharkfinning.net/shark-fin-soup-facts/ http://www.sharkwater.com/education.htm http://www.seashepherd.org/sharks/shark-finning.html http://serendip.brynmawr.edu/biology/b103/f00/web3/mccabe3.html http://sharkangels.org/index.php/issues-facing-sharks/shark-fin-soup
The Great Shark debate – to cull or not to cull, has been at the forefront of the minds of conservationists, as well as the general population for many decades now. The opinions of everyone are divided, according to their personal experiences, and views on what is right and wrong for the environment.
Every year hundreds of sharks get killed just because people fear them. Western Australia has brought in the Shark Culls after a series of fatal attacks. Most of these people attacked are usually surfers, swimmers or shark haters. Now imagine this, what if you were a shark swimming and suddenly someone tries to hunt your down, how would you feel? We wouldn’t like it very much if the sharks did the same thing to us. In the following paragraphs, I would give you three reasons on why Shark Culling should be abolished not only in Western Australia but also all around the world.
As they are at the top of the food chain, sharks play a very important role in the oceans in a way that an average fish does not. Sharks keep populations of other fish healthy and in proper proportion for their ecosystem. By preying on the old, sick or slower fish in a population, they prevent the spread of disease and prevent outbreaks that could be devastating. According to Ransom Myers from Shark savers, “sharks may be gone within the next decades if we continue to kill them, resulting in the loss of important foods that we depend on for survival, causing a marine ecosystem imbalance.” At the same time, I accept that shark nets could be useful, especially in shark infested areas that have been renowned as spots where many attacks have occurred, but I still believe, as you would, that scientists should spend more resources on working out why it is becoming more common for sharks to be entering shallower waters, looking for food – namely seals, who just happen to look like
One of the governments main reasons for culling the sharks is because they are coming in too close to the shores and becoming a potential threat to swimmers. But why is this happening? This is due to a change in shark feeding habits, but because they are eating more human of course not! Rather because us humans are over fishing and eliminating the fish/food sources of which sharks normally feed on. This is forcing sharks to come in closer to find food. Us as humans have forced sharks to come in closer and are now killing sharks because of our a...
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
The bull shark may be responsible for many shark attacks in the world but I believe that we have no right to kill them. Sharks are very important to animals food cycles and if the food cycles get messed up it can greatly effect the world. In fact, the bull shark is more vulnerable to human impact due to their ability to live in fresh and salt water but many sharks that are killed are for either shark fin soup or their liver oil. The sharks liver oil has many uses now but it started as a machine lubricant. Another way that sharks die is by recreational fishing. The sharks can get caught up in the fishermen's nets and eventually suffocate and die. As an environmental community, I feel like we need to inform people about shark habits and how to keep sharks safe. The water is their home and we are
Miller, Barbara. "The World Today - New shark attack sparks political frenzy." 2 March. 2009. Web. 15 Apr 2014. Available at: http://www.abc.net.au/cgi-bin/common/printfriendly.pl?http://www.abc.net.au/worldtoday/content/2008/s2504985
Information (sub-point): The solution to the problem of shark finning is to sign petitions and force the government to pass legislature that will ban shark finning, as well as ban the import of shark fins. In 2000, Bill Clinton signed the Shark Finning Prohibition Act of 2000 (SFPA), which “banned finning on any fishing vessel within United States territorial waters, and on all U.S.-flagged fishing vessels in international waters” (Speigel, 2011). Currently, it is also illegal to hunt sharks in many parts around the world due to various restrictions set by other government, but it is not illegal to import and sell shark fins. Finding shark fins in the US can be as easy as walking into an Asian restaurant and ordering shark fin soup. If we truly want to make a difference, and see a rise in the shark populations around the world, we need to ban the sell and trade of shark fins
How many more fatal shark attacks will it take for someone in authority to acknowledge the damages, economically and socially, caused to human beings by sharks? We must legalise the culling of sharks. Sharks do not only brutally attack us humans but they also kill us. Culling sharks may not be the most pleasing way to find a solution but it is the most effective, quickest and easiest method. Scientists have argued that culling sharks will bring the ecosystem crashing down but this in fact is not true.
Sharks have been on this earth for nearly 450 billion years. To put that into perspective, the first modern humans date back to about 60,000 years ago ("Our Mission: To save Sharks and Mantas”). Since then, both humans and sharks have evolved into the predatory mammals they are today. However, with the quick development of humans, civilization and technology, humans have not been able to fully understand the ways of sharks, although the motives of other human celebrities have been easy to understand and decipher. Because shark attacks have been becoming more televised, and sharks have been known to be more of a “threat” to humans, shark research foundations, such as the Shark Research Institute and the Pelagic Shark Research Foundation, have been created to help give an understanding to these creatures. Over 100 million sharks are being killed each year, and there is a counter on the Bite-Back Shark and Marine Conservation website. As one spends more time on the home page, the number on the counter is constantly increasing, showing how many sharks are slaughtered in the year to come (“Bite-Back – Shark and Marine Conservation”). Even with research to show that sharks are valuable to the ocean and vulnerable, there are people that think otherwise (“The Pelagic Shark ...
Every year, there are about 100 million Sharks killed, ultimately for its commercial success. Their fins are used as the main ingredient for a dish so-called Shark soup. However, many are unaware of the actual importance of Sharks' existence on Earth. They do a number of things to control and balance aquatic life down below, which in return affects how we live on the surface. Sharks have existed in our world for over 400 million years, if they were to suddenly disappear for industrial purposes, much problems will be encountered throughout the world. We must preserve the lives of Sharks, for many reasons most importantly that shark hunting is morally wrong, it may provide economic failure in a given time, and it may serve a critical unbalance of a healthy environmental state.
Demand, revenue, cost, and profit are the driving forces behind any economy. This notion is taught to most students in grade school and will carry on through the rest of their lives helping them make the most educated decisions they can. Logically, the greater the demand for something, the greater the profit will be. Whaling used to be a sizable part of the economy, due to the innumerable uses of a whale’s by-products, and consequently, there was a substantial profit margin. Presently, the largest demand for whaling is by Japan, Norway, and Iceland all of whom partake in whaling for either commercial or “research” purposes. However, the demand and revenue from whaling do not outweigh the costs that have tolled on the species. This practice is largely scrutinized by conservationists who believe that commercial whaling is going to bring some species of whales to extinction. The current demand for whaling is incredibly low; however, it is still necessary to continue the ban on commercial whaling.
Shark slaughter has led to shark populations being rapidly decimated all around the globe. Fishermen report that sharks are also getting smaller because they are not being given enough time to fully mature. Although there are other fish that are targeted more than sharks, they are not exactly affected by the kind of endangerment that sharks are currently experiencin...
Back in the dynasty the Emperors would serve the dish to honor the guest, because they believed it had healing benefits from the concurring of a shark (Fairclough, Caty). Fin soup still occurs today even when not on special (Fairclough, Caty). In addition the shark fins for can sell for a pretty penny anywhere from $500 a pound or even $1,000 a kilogram (Fairclough, Caty). As a matter of fact, fishermen in Melbour, Segal would export $1300 pounds worth of shark fins a week. It was recorded that a single adult fin sells for $80 and a two-meter monster can sell for $300. Additionally, 1 out of every 100 sharks reported killed between 2000-2008 comes from these fisherman(Hinshaw, Drew). (commentary) about Its question that fisherman practice “unsustainable finning” because it does pay nice , but the amount of money gained by finning isn’t comparable to how much sharks are worth to our economy. The global value of shark finning is around $630 million but is declining, while shark tourism is worth $312 million and promises to be worth $780 million in 20 years ( source 8). Human activity of finning isn’t the only reason to the decline of Great White sharks, human protection is another
So if shark finning is such a horrible practice, then why does it still continue? The reason is quite simple: money. It 's mind boggling to see what people will do for a simple piece of paper, and shark finning is no exception. It is estimated that the fins of a shark can sell for up to $500 per pound! With these kind of profit margins, it 's no wonder that restaurants in China still sell shark fin soup.