Prince Charles presents proof of profit in sustainable fisheries
Proof that sustainably managed fisheries can deliver higher profits as well as environmental benefits was presented on Friday by the Prince of Wales. The report by one of his charities was hailed as a rare piece of good news amid what is usually an unremittingly gloomy outlook for the world's dwindling fish stocks.
Prince Charles told an audience at Fishmongers' Hall in London: "The story today need no longer be one of doom and gloom and inevitable decline, but one that harbours the possibility of generating more value from a strongly performing natural asset. This potential can only be tapped if we manage it well."
He said the evidence gathered by his International Sustainability Unit (ISU), which examined 50 sustainably managed fisheries around the world, showed that improved fisheries management was "actually be more profitable than perennially succumbing to the temptation of maximising short term income while deferring the costs until later".
He quoted an estimate from the World Bank that if all fisheries around the world were better managed, they would be worth $50bn a year more than their current total contribution of $274bn to global GDP. But the number of fisheries that are subject to a sustainable management programme are still a minority, and global fish stocks are falling fast. According to the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organisation, at least a third are now overexploited, depleted or recovering from depletion, and this figure is rising.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2012/feb/03/prince-charles-sustainable-fisheries