OVERFISHING
What is overfishing?
“When too many fish are caught at once due to overfishing, the breeding population
cannot renew itself.”
Overfishing is the greatest threat to the oceans today, harming both people and sea
creatures. Nearly a third of the world's analyzed fisheries are at serious risk as a result
of extensive and persistent overfishing. Overfishing can occur in any body of water,
including ponds, rivers, and lakes. It is not just a problem in the ocean. It decreases the
total biodiversity levels and is a sort of environmental destruction.
What are the causes of overfishing?
1. Ineffective Fish Stocks Management
The absence of effective control and appropriate governmental restrictions has long
been a disadvantage to the fishing business. Tracking fishing activities has also been
quite difficult.
When it comes to reducing fishing capacity to reasonable levels, the laws and
restrictions in place today are inadequate.
2. Unsustainable Fishing
The use of nets, fishing techniques, and other fishing equipment catch fish in such
large quantities that they become endangered. This is considered unsustainable fishing.
Moreover, it might involve catching ocean animals besides fish in the process. By-
catch is the term used for unwanted animals. They are also known as "Debris" since
they are typically destroyed and dumped into the ocean.
Turtles, sharks, coral, seabirds, crabs, starfish, and sponges are among the creatures
that might be collected, killed, and returned to the water.
Some fishermen also catch little fish. This takes their chance to develop and
reproduce.
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3. Illegal Fishing
Poaching, capturing more fish than is permitted, and fishing outside of the season are
all examples of illegal fishing practices. According to WWF, illegal fishing adds to up
to 50% of some fisheries' total catch and roughly 20% of global capture overall.
By-catch and trawling are two unregulated fishing methods that cause severe harm.
Trawling is the practice of collecting fish by scrubbing the ocean floor. One of the
main reasons for the devastation of marine environments is this action.
4. Food and Economic Needs
The number of fish that fishing businesses bring ashore is mostly determined by
market availability and consumer demand.
The number of people on earth has multiplied numerous times over the past century.
The demand for food and seafood has consequently increased dramatically. These
factors, when combined with the commercial goals of the fishing industry, have forced
fishermen to catch more fish than the oceans can replace.
5. Government Funding
Many countries continue to provide funding for their fishing equipment worldwide.
This eventually results in overfishing as it permits unproductive fishing operations to
survive. According to estimates, the global fishing fleet is currently operating at up to
250 percent of its true capacity.
6. Fishing with Open Access
Another significant issue with overfishing is the "open access" character of the fishing
industry. Fishermen lack the incentive to leave fish in the water because there are no or
few property rights.
In addition, just 1.5% of water bodies have been recognized as protected areas. And
the majority of those regions are still reachable by fishers, putting them at risk of
exploitation.
What are the effects of overfishing?
1. Biodiversity loss
A decline in biodiversity is one of the overfishing's most obvious effects on the
environment. Due to overfishing, about one-third of all sharks, rays, and
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chimera species (a class of cartilaginous fish) are in danger of going extinct.
Despite not being used as food for humans, these animals are frequently caught
and killed with other kinds of seafood.
Like marine mammals, sea turtles, and seabirds, numerous species have seen
major losses in population because of unintentional deaths brought on by
fishing equipment. Due to overfishing, even significant sources of edible fish
have been brought dangerously close to extinction.
2. Ocean ecosystem destruction
Many water bodies have seen severe disruptions to food webs and the co-
dependency of many marine species as a result of diminished biodiversity in the
world's oceans. The reproduction, food supply, and mortality of other plant and
animal species in that habitat may vary when a keystone species is eliminated
from its natural ecosystem. An organism that significantly affects its ecosystem
is referred to as a keystone species.
The overfishing of coral reefs in their natural environments has led to a drop in
the biomass of many of these reefs. Fishing boats frequently employ methods
and tools that directly harm coral reefs. Furthermore, overfishing has
significantly decreased the number of plant-eating fish species in reef
ecosystems. These fish are in charge of consuming algae and other vegetation
that could harm coral reefs. As a result, coral reefs are more susceptible to
disease and the effects of climate change.
3. Reduced economic and food security
Overfishing has a tremendous impact on the food and economic security of
human populations all over the world in addition to its direct effects on marine
habitats. Seafood is a major source of protein in many coastal towns. On the
other hand, the global supply of edible fish has significantly decreased due to
overfishing. According to research, the world's oceans will be depleted of fish
by the year 2050, posing a threat to the food security of many populations that
depend on seafood for survival.
What can be done to solve this problem?
1. More marine protected areas can be made.
Fewer than 2% of the world's seas are currently protected by marine parks, and less
than 1% of the oceans are exempt from all forms of fishing. To secure fishing for
future generations, more no-catch zones must be created to allow fish populations
and their ecosystems to recover and replenish themselves.
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2. Trawling should be banned.
Massive wasteful bycatch occurs when large nets used in trawling sweep up every
animal and ecosystem in their path and release the dead fish back into the water
because they weren't the intended target species. Such marine life is not ours to
waste. Even though there are numerous initiatives aimed at reducing by-catch and a
few isolated pockets of land where bottom trawling is prohibited or restricted
worldwide, these actions fall short. There should be a complete ban on trawling.
3. Everyone should be reached out to and educated.
With the help of the government and municipalities, campaigns can be organized.
TV programs can be aired.
What can we do personally?
1. Keep away from big fish like marlin, tuna, and sharks, which have been
overfished for many years.
2. Buy locally. It requires less energy to store and transport the food. For shrimp,
this is especially true.
3. Go wild; avoid farming. When fish are raised in large nets in the ocean, tons of
garbage are dumped onto the ocean floor, illness is introduced to wild
populations, and seals, whales, and sharks in the area are killed when they try to
break the nets to get at the fish.
Overfishing Solutions in Turkiye
In the article of Daily Sabah (Oct 7, 22) Eyüp Mümtaz Tıraşın, a member of the Institute of
Maritime Sciences and Technology at Dokuz Eylül University of Türkiye, says the most
effective measures to protect the fisheries were time-specific bans, bans for certain areas and
the formation of “fishery preservation areas” entirely closed to fishing. Tıraşın, who also serves
as deputy chair of the Scientific Advisory Committee on Fisheries of the General Fisheries
Commission for the Mediterranean (GFCM), says “unfortunately” some fishermen violated
bans.
Tıraşın states that detailed regulations might be needed, based on studies on the mating and
incubation season of “critical” species. “We see a tendency for overfishing now. This might
have something to do with low income for fishermen but if this is the case, fishermen should
be provided financial support. We should reduce the number of fishing boats. Turkiye already
has too much fishing in its waters,” he said.
“We can find a solution to this issue with management plans that both preserve the ecosystem
and socioeconomic structures of fishing communities, plans that will also secure access to fish
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for consumers,” he said. “For example, fishing boats can be restricted to operate in one sea
only. If you fish in the Aegean, you should continue fishing there, instead of heading to the
Black Sea (for more fishing activity).”Tıraşın also points out that supply and demand
determine the price of fish, hence, the rate of consumption. “Consumers should also be
cautious not to purchase species banned from hunting. They should not buy fish smaller than
the size designated (by the government),” he warns.
Professor Deniz Ayas, a fishing expert from Mersin University, says fishing bans and
measures have been implemented based on data about the ecosystem. Yet, Ayas adds that
many species are under threat of extinction due to overfishing. “Many shark species have lost
almost 90% of their population,” Ayas says. Ayas says fishermen’s choice of fishing tools is
also part of the problem. “Trolling does not mean you will catch only one specific species you
wanted to hunt. Like many marine animals, sharks are also caught inadvertently during
trolling. It places pressure on other species. Sharks, for instance, can give birth to only four
offspring a year, while other fish can lay up to 100,000 roes,” he says. Ayas notes that more
areas should be preserved and any type of fishing should be banned in those places.
References
1. https://therevolutionmovie.com/index.php/open-your-eyes/overfishing/
solutions/
2. https://sentientmedia.org/how-does-overfishing-affect-the-environment/
3. https://www.edf.org/oceans/overfishing-most-serious-threat-our-oceans
4. https://eartheclipse.com/environment/causes-and-effects-overfishing.html
5. https://www.worldwildlife.org/threats/overfishing
6. https://www.dailysabah.com/turkey/climate-change-overfishing-disrupt-
turkiyes-fishing-stocks/news O C T 0 7 , 2 0 2 2
