This is something I'm very passionate about. PLEASE READ.
I wonder how much of our daily activities we would do if we knew the impacts that they had. I think its safe to say that most people would make little changes here and there. Since learning more information on sustainability and ecosystem health, I've vowed to keep up with these little changes. Since man discovered fish in the ocean we have been living off of their plenty. But now there isn't plenty. For example, the cod fish population in New Foundland has completely crashed due to over fishing. The place that drew people in for the richness in cod fish and opportunity is now deserted of cod fish and opportunity. The Blue Fin Tuna is very sought after as a delicacy in many places around the world. It is highly endangered due to over fishing, yet it is still being fished and served in restaurants that you may eat in. On average around 90% of the predatory fish in the ocean are gone. Where did they go you may ask? WE ATE THEM. With the absence of the predatory fish we are disrupting the balance of the entire ocean. An influx of smaller fish will cause an end to even smaller fish and the list goes on. Soon the ocean will be nothing but algae and jellyfish. We have already seen a dramatic increase in the jellyfish populations, making beaches unsafe to swim in. There are regulations that have been put in order to help prevent this from happening. Quotas have been set for fishermen so that they can harvest a healthy amount of the fish populations and allow them to replenish their numbers naturally. However in most cases the regulations are ignored. The ICCAT's recommended amount of tuna that should be harvested is between 8,000-15,000 tons of tuna ( this number is given to help ensure that the tuna have a chance of repopulating, it is not determined that even with this decrease they stand a chance at this point). The Government quota allowance is 29,000 tons. The actual harvested amount is 61,000 tons. Still want to have that beautiful piece of blue fin tuna fillet for dinner? In addition the fishing of these fish is killing other wildlife. Nets are sent thousands of feet deep and wide to scoop up these fish. With that the fishermen pick up sea turtles, dolphins, and other unsellable fish. These fish die and then get thrown back into the ocean. Well to sum up my rant (if you read down this far), there is something that everyone can do to help the issue. ASK where your fish is coming from. ONLY eat sustainable fish. BUG your government to set up protected areas and to regulate the fishing industry.
heres a link to know what the good fish and bad fish to eat are...
http://www.montereybayaquarium.org/cr/cr_seafoodwatch/sfw_recommendations.aspx?c=ln
