No Fish by 2048?

[ChefJune]

This is on Yahoo News this morning! Now, for all my friends who laugh at me when I mention that one fish or another is "endangered," y'all can stop laughing! this is HUGE!
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Fish may be off the menu by 2048 if ocean species continue to be lost at the present rate, a study has shown.
A major investigation of marine ecosystems around the world predicts their wholesale collapse in the next 40 years.

If nothing is done to reverse the trend, in a mere four decades, little sustainable fish or seafood will remain.

At this point, commercial fishing will no longer be viable. Cod and chips will become a fondly-remembered British tradition, consigned to history.

The extent of the crisis is revealed in one of the most wide-ranging and thorough studies of marine biodiversity trends ever conducted.

Researchers first analysed the results of 32 experiments that manipulated the fate of marine species on small local scales.

Next they tracked 1,000 years of change in species diversity across 12 coastal areas. In each one they looked at trends affecting between 30 and 80 economically and ecologically important species, drawing information from old archives, fishery records, sediment cores and archaeological data.

Then the team sifted through all the available catch records for 64 ocean-wide regions spanning the years 1950 to 2003. Collectively, these large marine ecosystems (LMEs) produced 83% of global fisheries yields over the past 50 years.

Finally, the scientists investigated the recovery of biodiversity in 48 marine reserves and areas closed to fishing.

Study leader Dr Boris Worm, from Dalhousie University in Halifax, Canada, said: "Species have been disappearing from ocean ecosystems and this trend has recently been accelerating. Now we begin to see some of the consequences. For example, if the long-term trend continues, all fish and seafood species are projected to collapse within my lifetime - by 2048.

[lulu]

Fish stocks being a p[roblem has been rumbling on for as long as I can remember, and is a terrible terrible thing. We HAVE to take more responsibility for this.

I had an article from a green publication on which fish and from which sources were most ethical, both environmentaly and to the fish themsleves (e.g. farming methods etc) but it came to the fish market/mongers to often with me and disintegrated and now I have forgotton most of it. Its such a difficult issue and the advice is often contrary. I do want to be ethical in shopping for fish (and other things) but its like other green things......we need clear advice. e.g. We nearly bought a Prius this summer and are now told they are worse for the enironment......

[VeraBlue]

I heard this on the news this morning. I can only say I hope the wake up call is heeded.

I believe they said that nets would come up 90% empty....


I'm telling you, it's going to be nothing but Soylent Green for everyone. Watch and see...

[attie]

Take note good people, Chef June's post speaks a lot of truth. This might not happen in 2048 but it will happen, and for some species it has almost happened now, for others it might take a little longer.
I'm almost at retirement age and I won't see it but my kids will. My uncle was a professional fisherman and I've lived by the sea and fished it since I was knee high to a grasshopper, even now I cook fish for a living. I've studied the sea and what's in all my life and I could tell you many horrendous stories about what we've done to it.
Responsible nations now regulate their fishing industries to try and make them sustainable only to have other nations who will not recognise these laws snub the system and openly rape their waters of it's seafood. The more expensive fish become the more these people will fish and take the chances of not getting caught.
Farming is not the answer in the form it is presently done, especially for shrimp, it takes 1 1/2 ton of wild caught seafood converted to food to grow out 1 ton of shrimp so it's a dog chasing it's tail situation. Other methods are being developed but at the moment it doesn't stack up.
I have seen our fish stocks here depleted to such an extent that even though we have cut our catch by 75% for some species fishing for them is not a viable business and a total ban has been placed on others. 30% of our Great Barrier Reef has now been closed to fishing, thankfully just in time as some species have now multiplied but we have the poaching problem. We're talking big dollars here with some intruders being caught with upwards of a million dollars worth of product on board and boats being caught on a daily basis.
I better stop -- sorry guys -- I get all upset about these things

[ChefJune]

http://www.seafoodchoices.org/home.php is a good place to start to get more info on what is safe to eat and why.

The Monterey Bay Aquarium site is especially informative about West Coast (USA) fish. http://www.mbayaq.org/

This is an issue I'm really passionate about, and have been involved in for a long time.

[attie]

Here's an example of why I get cranky about this, I apologise if I upset anyone, but this is just one reason why our fish stocks are dwindling.
Many years ago Japan, New Zealand and Australia signed a self regulating quota to limit our catches of Yellow Fin Tuna in AU/NZ waters because stocks were running out. The stocks still kept dwindling and it got to the stage early this year that there were very few fish left. Independent auditors were brought in, AU and NZ were fine, they stuck to their quota however, they found that Japan had over fished they quota to the value of $2 billion dollars.

[Nicholas Mosher]

I read this report on the BBC's site last week.
Pretty scary stuff.

I'm guilty of eating lots of fresh tuna.

I do stay away from Cod though which is severely overfished in my area.
I also don't eat a whole lot of shrimp, clams, or lobster.

My seafood intake is primarily Sea Scallops, Haddock, and Yellowfin Tuna.
At the sushi bars I do eat a variety of stuff which I should choose more carefully with ecology as a guiding factor.

[mudbug]

I'm staying out of this one. For various reasons.

[attie]

Originally Posted by mudbug

I'm staying out of this one. For various reasons.

Awh! come on Mudbug, be a devil and throw something in the ring

[aeyla]

Originally Posted by attie

Here's an example of why I get cranky about this, I apologise if I upset anyone, but this is just one reason why our fish stocks are dwindling.
Many years ago Japan, New Zealand and Australia signed a self regulating quota to limit our catches of Yellow Fin Tuna in AU/NZ waters because stocks were running out. The stocks still kept dwindling and it got to the stage early this year that there were very few fish left. Independent auditors were brought in, AU and NZ were fine, they stuck to their quota however, they found that Japan had over fished they quota to the value of $2 billion dollars.

This is the big problem, all the country's that are willing to put regulations on fishing are doing their part but... come on what can we do about the country's that don't? Asia is the worst for over fishing their waters they even eat WHALES!!! I also have a problem with "some" green studies as a lot of them have political agendas. I would love to see the actual data that they use then we can talk....
I am sure this is not going to be a very popular response.