Oceans at Risk – and So Are We

Overfishing and Ocean Health

The oceans have sustained life through the ages. Most people and businesses take it for granted, but fishing practices, pollution and other human impacts have devastated underwater habitats, reduced animal populations, and wiped out species. Ocean ecosystems have been thrown out of balance around the world.

On April 10, a panel of ocean/environmental experts discussed concrete steps that must be taken to save oceans and ultimately sustain life on Earth. On the panel: Philippe Cousteau, president/CEO of Earth Echo; Sylvia Earle, National Geographic explorer-in-residence; Joshua Reichert, managing director of the Pew Environment Group; Barton Seaver, executive chef of Hook in Washington, D.C.; Lee Crockett, director of Pew Environment Group’s Federal Fisheries Program Reform, and participating by phone from Hawaii, William Aila, member of the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands Coral Reef Ecosystem Reserve Council.

While awareness of overfishing is growing, action is lagging. Some things you can do:

* If you eat fish, become aware of species in peril – and change your choices. As with everything, these rules hold true: profits drive business, consumer demand generates profits. Businesses rarely change their ways for moral reasons or place ethics over economics. So change depends on consumers aligning their demands with their values. Ask if a purchase supports exploitation. Vote with your dollars.

* Overfishing means that populations are depleted before the animals can reproduce. Examples include Atlantic Cod; once so common in New England, the stock has collapsed. due to overfishing, catch declined 89% between 1980 and 2006. Bluefin tuna: between 1963 and 2006, landings of this highly migratory species in U.S. ocean territory fell 99%.

* Bycatch results in untold and unnecessary destruction of life. Victims include sea turtles and monk seals who get trapped in irresponsibly cast fishing nets and lines.

* Pressure government to improve and enforce laws. It’s up to citizens to voice support for restoring fish populations and protecting ocean ecosystems.

* Be aware that some of the eight regional fishery management councils have worked to gut existing environmental review procedures and block public participation in fisheries management. Don’t think this helps the individual fisherman – in fact, it hurts them and their communities. Greed is not good.

* Shark fin soup: horrendous cruelty to sharks and ecosystems. As marine biology experts said at a recent meeting, sharks need a public relations campaign. These predators are vital to the balance of ocean life – and their threat to humans is vastly overstated. Why shark fin soup should be eternally banned: to obtain the fins, the fishermen catch the creatures, haul them onto the boats, slice the animals’ vital fins off while they visibly suffer, then throw the sharks back into the sea. The sharks can no longer swim, so you can imagine the horrific ending to their lives. All this just to add an odd texture to a ridiculously priced “delicacy.” Clue: “delicacy” means “you’ve been duped.”

* Don’t expect other countries to adopt environmentally responsible practices before the U.S. does. Lax rules and compliance measures become excuses for others to behave badly.

* Retool regulations. In January 2007, President Bush signed legislation reauthorizing and amending the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (MSA), which governs fishery management in federal ocean waters. The law requires managers to establish annual catch limits based on real science, and to end overfishing in U.S. ocean Waters by 2011. The National Marine Fisheries Service is now writing regulations to implement these new requirements.

It’s critical that strong, clear rules are written and enforced, and that the goal is not business interests, but restoring health and balance to ocean ecosystems before it’s too late.

* Fishery managers must be held accountable.

* Remember the dolphin-safe tuna campaign? That successful effort started with people, not government policies. Push up from the grassroots. Speak up, and vote with your dollars.

* Kids and adults need to learn about the origins of the food that’s largely taken for granted.

More info:

Free fact sheets on overfishing and the National Environmental Policy Act
http://www.pewtrusts.org/our_work.aspx?category=146

Conserve Our Ocean Legacy
http://www.OceanLegacy.org

Marine Fish Conservation Network
http://www.ConserveFish.org

EarthEcho International
http://www.EarthEcho.org

The Ocean Conservancy
http://www.OceanConservancy.org

A petition to voice support for healthy oceans
http://www.oceanlegacy.org/petition.html