Overfishing | Farmed Fish | Sustainability
“We need many things to keep the world a better place. But, nothing else will matter if we fail to protect the ocean. Our fate and the oceans are one.” — Sylvia Earle
It is estimated that over 3 billion people around the world rely on fish as their primary source of protein and approximately 12% of the world relies on fisheries in some form or another… 90% of which are small-scale fishermen.
Most people consume approximately twice as much fish as they did 50 years ago. It also doesn’t help that there are now 4 times as many people on earth compared to the 1960s. This is one driver of overfishing, as available fishing stocks are being depleted faster than they can be replenished.
Image Credit: The Ocean Agency
Just How Bad Is Overfishing?
“Surely overfishing can’t be that bad, right? The seas are just filled with tons of fish, and it would take us forever to overfish to the point that they began to disappear entirely, right?”
Think again…
Overfishing is more than depleted fish stocks, although that certainly is one big reason why it’s bad. Other issues with overfishing include:
Increased algae in the water
Destruction of fishing communities
Tougher fishing for small vessels
Species pushed to near extinction
Bycatch
Increased waste
Mystery fish on supermarket shelves and restaurants
So, Which Countries Are Currently Overfishing?
The main offenders named by Pew Charitable Trusts and put on the “shame list” are:
Japan
China
United States
Indonesia
Chinese Taipei
South Korea
Is it all doom and gloom?
Well, an announcement made on December 2, 2020, stated that the “governments of 14 maritime countries, which control 40% of the world’s coastlines, committed to putting an end to overfishing, restoring declining fish populations, and stopping the flow of plastic pollution into the oceans over the next ten years.”
With such a bold statement, we shall see what measures are put into place to support the future of sustainable fishing.
What Role Does Farmed Fish Play In the Overfishing Crisis?
Farmed fish is a phenomenon that we take for granted today, but is actually a revolutionary method of removing fish from the water and onto our plates. Initially, it was seen as a way of preserving wild fish populations. Yet, the reality, as is often the case, turned out to be a little different.
Fish farming often involves crowding thousands of fish together in small areas away from their natural habitat, which, as you can imagine, turns out to have a number of detrimental effects.
Just to name a few contaminants: waste products, primarily fish poop, excess food, and dead fish. What’s more, fish farms require lots of pesticides and medications to prevent the spread of parasites and diseases inside the fish farm.
The chemicals used in making farmed fish are likely to spread into the surrounding waters and then simply become part of the water of the world, building up over time. In many cases, farmed fish are farmed in areas that are already heavily polluted.
