Oceans running out of fish as undeclared catches add a third to official figures

[SlyPokerDog]

The global catch of fish and seafood is falling at three times the rate reported by the United Nations and urgently needs to be slowed to avoid a crash, reports Christopher Pala. The finding comes in a new study for Nature which quantifies the huge illegal industrial fish pillaging taking place around the world, together with artisanal catches, which in 2010 added over 50% to UN estimates.

Despite steady gains in efficiency and hefty subsidies, the world's international fleets of industrial fishing vessels are seeing their catch diminish much faster than previously thought.

http://www.theecologist.org/News/ne..._catches_add_a_third_to_official_figures.html

 

[SlyPokerDog]

There are plenty of fish, Denny saw a bird eating one.

 

[jlprk]

If the fish want to be counted, they can damn well fill out the census form and tell the government how many worms they make each year.

 

[PDXFonz]

Fish? Who cares about fish? I don't eat them anyways!

 

[jlprk]

There are plenty of fish, Denny saw a bird eating one.

Denny's right about climate scientists. If God didn't fill the seas with fish, then why would He invent the radar fish finder?

 

[oldfisherman]

There are about 4 million commercial fishing boats in the world. 40,000 of them are over 100 tons in size. These large ships catch a majority of the fish. They all report their catches; many have government observers on them to monitor the number and kinds of fish caught.

There are few places for boats to unload their catches; all of these ports are known and monitored. Processing plants are also few and also monitored, they also report the amount of fish they process. It is very easy to cross check the amount of fish processed against the amount of fish reported as caught.

My point is, yes there maybe some illegal catches that go unreported. However, the figures used in this report are very suspect and highly exaggerated.

Any fishing story funded by the very rich PEW foundation needs to be questioned due to their agenda of wanting to stop all ocean fishing.

 

[jlprk]

Aw, you don't know any--wait! That name!

 

[ripcityboy]

Okay. You want to go and tell China to stop over fishing off the Philippine reefs? You'd have a better time of keeping a bunch of rum away from Aussie rugby hooligans by surrounding it with road cones.

Sent from my SGH-M919 using Tapatalk

 

[Denny Crane]

 

[Denny Crane]

There are about 4 million commercial fishing boats in the world. 40,000 of them are over 100 tons in size. These large ships catch a majority of the fish. They all report their catches; many have government observers on them to monitor the number and kinds of fish caught.

There are few places for boats to unload their catches; all of these ports are known and monitored. Processing plants are also few and also monitored, they also report the amount of fish they process. It is very easy to cross check the amount of fish processed against the amount of fish reported as caught.

My point is, yes there maybe some illegal catches that go unreported. However, the figures used in this report are very suspect and highly exaggerated.

Any fishing story funded by the very rich PEW foundation needs to be questioned due to their agenda of wanting to stop all ocean fishing.

 

[oldfisherman]

PEW is to the fishing industry what Clownzano is to the Blazers.

 

[Denny Crane]

Funny about the fish finder comment. Maybe the scientists should use one and count the fish where they are.

 

[MarAzul]

40,000 of them are over 100 tons in size

Yep. And there we have most of the problem. 50 years ago most fishing boats were like the rare neat little trawlers you still see around in diminishing numbers. The little local fisheries have turned into big business International operations. The sonar on my boat for finding fish is so cool! Geez, 50 years ago I could have I could have been the envy of the entire West Coast with that thing, never a trip out, without a boat load of fish in no time at all.

 

[barfo]

Yep. And there we have most of the problem. 50 years ago most fishing boats were like the rare neat little trawlers you still see around in diminishing numbers. The little local fisheries have turned into big business International operations. The sonar on my boat for finding fish is so cool! Geez, 50 years ago I could have I could have been the envy of the entire West Coast with that thing, never a trip out, without a boat load of fish in no time at all.

If only we had fewer regulations, then everything would be fine, and the invisible hand of the market would cause big business to fish sustainably.

barfo

 

[Denny Crane]

If only we had fewer regulations, then everything would be fine, and the invisible hand of the market would cause big business to fish sustainably.

barfo

Big business did fish sustainably for hundreds of years (in North America) until government got involved. World wide, thousands of years.

 

[MarAzul]

If only we had fewer regulations, then everything would be fine, and the invisible hand of the market would cause big business to fish sustainably.

barfo

Smarter perhaps. The government bought out most of the small (sustainable) fisherman. The remaining ones move to much bigger boats, even with factory ships to support the fleet.
There are no Salmon canneries left on the Coast now. My such progress under the guidance of Big Brother.

 

[oldfisherman]

Smarter perhaps. The government bought out most of the small (sustainable) fisherman. The remaining ones move to much bigger boats, even with factory ships to support the fleet.
There are no Salmon canneries left on the Coast now. My such progress under the guidance of Big Brother.

Agree, I do not believe most people understand the amount of fish these large ships catch compared to small commercial and sport boats. Some of the large ships do have their own processing plants on board.

This may not be accurate because my old memory fades at times, and I can not find the report where I read this to verify it. I believe I read that 90% of all of the oceans fish are caught on these large ships and only 10% by small commercial fishing and sport boats.

The reason the real number relates to the article is. The large fishing ships are monitored and many do have observers. It is the other 10% of the catch that is difficult to monitor and are responsible for many of the illegal catches. So the numbers used in this article are very suspect, and generated to feed an agenda.

I hate when special interest groups generate propaganda and imply it is real science the way this article does.

It is the large fishing ships that are creating the problem of overfishing, not the small commercial and sports fishermen, legal or not. But it is the small commercial and sports fishermen that are paying the price with decreased quotas and seasons. The big ships just cruise outside the 200 mile exclusive economic zones (EEZ) where countries can not enforce quotas and seasons. Most small boats do not have the range to fish outside of their countries 200 mille EEZ.

 

[barfo]

Big business did fish sustainably for hundreds of years (in North America) until government got involved. World wide, thousands of years.

You are confusing correlation and causation. You might as well say that fishing was sustainable until americans started watching television.

Fishing used to be sustainable because humans didn't have the means to overfish. Now we do, so we do.

barfo

 

[Denny Crane]

You are confusing correlation and causation. You might as well say that fishing was sustainable until americans started watching television.

Fishing used to be sustainable because humans didn't have the means to overfish. Now we do, so we do.

barfo

I'll stick with government is the problem, not the solution.

 

[barfo]

I'll stick with government is the problem, not the solution.

Gee, I'm so surprised.

Well, you've got that hammer, keep hitting things. Something is bound to turn out to be a nail at some point.

barfo

 

[MarAzul]

Agree, I do not believe most people understand the amount of fish these large ships catch compared to small commercial and sport boats. Some of the large ships do have their own processing plants on board.

This may not be accurate because my old memory fades at times, and I can not find the report where I read this to verify it. I believe I read that 90% of all of the oceans fish are caught on these large ships and only 10% by small commercial fishing and sport boats.

The reason the real number relates to the article is. The large fishing ships are monitored and many do have observers. It is the other 10% of the catch that is difficult to monitor and are responsible for many of the illegal catches. So the numbers used in this article are very suspect, and generated to feed an agenda.

I hate when special interest groups generate propaganda and imply it is real science the way this article does.

It is the large fishing ships that are creating the problem of overfishing, not the small commercial and sports fishermen, legal or not. But it is the small commercial and sports fishermen that are paying the price with decreased quotas and seasons. The big ships just cruise outside the 200 mile exclusive economic zones (EEZ) where countries can not enforce quotas and seasons. Most small boats do not have the range to fish outside of their countries 200 mille EEZ.

Precisely Sir! Thank you for informing the lads.

 

[Denny Crane]

Gee, I'm so surprised.

Well, you've got that hammer, keep hitting things. Something is bound to turn out to be a nail at some point.

barfo

Not everything looks like a nail. This does because it is.

To use your awful metaphor.

 

[oldfisherman]

I am not an Obama fan, however I have to give him credit when due. In his SOTU address, he mentions the problem with overlapping Govt agencies and how inefficient that system is. He used Salmon as one of his examples, here is his quote.

Then there's my favorite example: The Interior Department is in charge of salmon while they're in freshwater, but the Commerce Department handles them when they're in saltwater. I hear it gets even more complicated once they're smoked."

Obama missed the federal regulations to salmon fishing and management granted under tribal treaties, as well as the Corps of Engineers controlling water levels that affect salmon runs.

Then there are the various state agencies not mentioned that further complicate Salmon management such as the state Fish & Game, Parks Dept,. Dept of Lands, state Dept of Agriculture (local water rights that affect Salmon).

I am sure I missed many agencies that have an affect on our Salmon runs.

The list of federal and state agencies that regulate and affect the fishing industry is mind boggling. The problem is, each agency has its own agenda that is unrelated to the other agencies. They do not work together in a common goal to improve our ecosystem.


The states that have the most balanced and healthiest ecosystems, which includes fish, are the states that have combined agencies together. The fewer agencies involved the better the results have been.