Trend for deep-sea trawling puts rare fish on the ocean's critical list

[Thom Little]

Deep-sea fish are being taken to the brink of extinction because the dramatic collapse of shallow-water stocks is sending fishing trawlers further out to exploit deeper waters.

Scientists believe the overfishing that has caused the demise of the traditional catch of fish, such as cod and plaice, is now causing an equally severe, long-term decline of more exotic, deep-water species.

Research into five North Atlantic species of deep-sea fish has found that their numbers have fallen dramatically during the relatively short time since trawlers began to exploit new deepwater fishing grounds off Canada.

Similar trends have been observed off the coasts of Britain and Europe, where commercial trawlers have turned increasingly to deepwater species over the past two decades, such as the orange roughy, which can live for 150 years and take 25 years to reach sexual maturity.



http://news.independent.co.uk/environment/article336566.ece

[acmejack]

1. This is a real problem

I saw some pictures associated with this type of fishing, before & after, and they were shocking. It looked like the sea floor had been vacuumed. It was completely denuded of all life, debris, everything.

[Submariner]

2. As a fisheries scientist since the '70s

I've read nothing but negative data about fisheries stocks and human impacts on our ocean resources since then. I wish the science/news articles from the '70s were on the internets now for all to see. I remember stories stating that "if we don't stop overfishing the haddock, then we will have to settle for eating COD." Heaven forbid! Eat Cod? Cod was almost considered a trash fish to eat then (potentially wormy). Why eat cod when there is haddock to be had? Then the cod disappeared as most other sustainable stocks of fish have done from overfishing. The pollack was a very reviled fish in the '70s...considered much worse than cod. They are over fished now because of the popularity of those fake crab legs which are really composed of pollack squeezed out of a tube with a red line (food coloring) painted on the meat.

In summary....most all ocean fisheries are f**cked because of the greedy fishing industry spurned on by an overpopulated hungry planet and environmental protections traded away by the republican party to their lobbyists bribers contributors. No big picture long term view is considered when republicans can get some short-term political gain and fast cash for the deal. The big slides in fisheries started during the Reagan years when James Watt and other unqualified cronies wreaked havoc on the environment.

[One_Life_To_Give]

3. Who can regulate the deep waters?

I am assuming we are talking waters over 200 miles offshore. We could regulate the US Flagged fishing fleet. But that won't stop the other fishing fleets that are out there.
Whats more even if we get a international agreement on fishing in international waters. Current treaties on maritime enforcement limit boarding actions to the country of registry or their authorized designes. Not to mention the logistics issues of trying to patrol that far out.

I don't mean to imply that it can't or shouldn't be done. But this would be a very large undertaking. And in a practicle sense I think we could only protect a relativly small area of the worlds oceans located near the Industrialized West.

[phantom power]

4. Cultural memory is short.

Being born in 1969, I have always considered cod to be a fine fish. If I've ever eaten haddock, I don't remember it.

[Oerdin]

5. Most fish & chips

Were normally cod or haddock.

[gulfcoastliberal]

6. Thanks for posting this.

Amazing how we are destroying our only planet without regard for the future - only the quick buck matters.