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Decline In Fish Stock

DECLINE IN FISH STOCK

CARRIE YEAGER
02/22/09

It has always been a belief that the ocean was a never-ending renewable resource. We never thought that the day would come when we would deplete the oceans never ending supply of food. The day has now come. It is believed that we have depleted 90% of all the large fish in the ocean. The depletion of the large fish in the ocean could mean a re-organization of the oceans ecosystem; know one knows what the consequences of this will be.

How did this happen? The ocean is so big it does not seem possible. There are a few different things that have caused this to happen. The human population has increased but the ocean is still the same size. The population could hit an estimated double digit in the next twenty years. With the larger population there is a bigger demand for food, there for a greater demand for fish. Fisherman are no longer using traditional means of fishing, they are using large fishing vessels, often in fleets, which increases the rate of fishing. Along with the increasing competition in fishing the methods have improved, a single catch can be several tons. With all of this fishing going on at these rates the fish no long have time to breed to replenish their numbers.

The next question would be how do we fix this? And can we fix this issue? There are measures that can be taken to reverse this problem. The problem is that it will take all of the world’s governments to corporate in order to make it work. We need to enforce sustainable fishing, which is easier said than done. We need to promote and support large fish farms along all costal waters worldwide. All governments need to agree to the international fishing boundaries and enforce anti poaching. These are only a few things that need to happen but it is a start and it needs to happen now before it is too late.

The first step in address this issue is going to be developing a sustainable fishing regulation. Limits need to be...