Fall in fish stocks far worse than feared

[GliderGuider]

Fall in fish stocks far worse than feared, study shows

The dramatic decline of fish stocks around the British Isles is highlighted by a study showing that fishing fleets today have to work 17 times as hard to catch a given amount of fish than the largely sail-powered vessels of the late-19th century.

In 1889, Britain's fishing fleets were landing twice as much fish as today's advanced vessels; this catch rose to a peak in 1937 when fishing vessels in England and Wales landed more than 14 times as much by weight as the average annual catch of today.

Scientists said that data gathered since the 1880s, when records began, showed a dramatic collapse in stocks of cod, haddock, ling, halibut and other commercial species of fish.

As fish stocks have declined, the "fishing power" of the fleet has increased thanks to improvements such as lighter fishing nets, radar for tracking fish shoals and high-powered engines for making longer journeys out to sea. Yet for many species, stocks have fallen dramatically, by more than 90 per cent in some cases – as has the average size of the fish landed.

Assessments of fish stocks go back only 20 or 40 years, which means that the management targets based on them are incomplete: a more realistic assessment should look at the past 100 years or more, Professor Roberts said. "These results should supply an important corrective to the short-termism inherent in fisheries management today," he said.

Oh, joy.

[ConcernedCanuk]

1. It ain't gonna be very pretty in the Gulf of Mexico for the next century either . .

.
.
.

it's only just begun

[pansypoo53219]

2. it's like when you clear cut a forest

fish can't breed fast enough. humans are killing the golden goose.

[GliderGuider]

3. Yes, however...

You can SEE a clear-cut forest. Fish are invisible below the surface of the water, and mobile so the stocks are very hard to assess. That makes it much easier to exploit them to extinction.

[Big Blue Marble]

4. For an inside look at the history and technologies of the fishing industry,

read the book: "Cod: A biography of the Fish that Changed the World." You will better understand
how modern fishing in :strip mining: our oceans. Soon there will be little left as our oceans are fast becoming
uninhabitable as well.

[RaleighNCDUer]

5. surprise, surprise. As fishing fleets become more efficient at catching fish

fewer fish survive to breed, making for lower stocks.

"Assessments of fish stocks go back only 20 or 40 years..."

And yet, Arthur C Clarke wrote science fiction about managing fish stocks fifty years ago, seeing what unmanaged, poorly regulated fishing was doing even then.