Fish populations once thought to be inexhaustible now face the prospect of extinction if policy ...

[OKIsItJustMe]

http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/cifamerica/2010/mar/12/fishing-extinction

Fishing in troubled waters

Fish populations once thought to be inexhaustible now face the prospect of extinction if policy changes are not made soon

Sylvia Earle and Susan Lieberman
guardian.co.uk, Sunday 14 March 2010 10.00 GMT

It has been said that if you give a man a fish you feed him for a day, though if you teach a man to fish you feed him for life. But times have changed. Now we know that only if you save species of fish from overexploitation will there be hope of providing food for a lifetime, let alone for generations that follow.

Fish and other sea creatures historically valued solely as commodities are critically important to healthy ocean ecosystems, which in turn provide benefits to humankind. Yet the ocean is in deep trouble. Fish populations once thought to be inexhaustible now face the prospect of becoming extinct for any commercial purpose – and even completely disappearing – if policy changes are not made soon.

Iconic species such as http://www.pewtrusts.org/uploadedFiles/wwwpewtrustsorg/Fact_Sheets/Protecting_ocean_life/English_CITES_tuna_pew_position.pdf">bluefin tuna (pdf) and many kinds of sharks demonstrate the gravity of the issue. Optimistic reports find that between 18% and 28% of Atlantic bluefin tuna remain from the number in the sea half a century ago; others estimate that there are fewer than 10%. Meanwhile, a http://www.pewtrusts.org/uploadedFiles/wwwpewtrustsorg/Fact_Sheets/Protecting_ocean_life/English_CITES_sharks_all.pdf?n=4283">number of shark species (pdf) have declined by more than 90% in some areas, due largely to the growing international trade in shark fins.

It is not too late to save these animals and reverse their decline. Protection for whales, while not universal, has resulted in a gradual recovery of several greatly depleted species. African elephants, poached in many countries to a fraction of historic numbers for their ivory tusks, began to recover following a ban on international ivory commerce. International trade controls are working to give ocelots, jaguars, alligators and crocodiles, hunted for their skins, a better chance for survival.

...

[CrispyQ]

1. " once thought to be inexhaustible ..."

Does anyone understand the word "finite?" What is it again that makes us the dominate species on this planet? Our "superior intellect?" :crazy: :crazy: :crazy:

[OKIsItJustMe]

2. Fish are different from a natural resource like coal or oil

Fish reproduce.

If fisheries were properly managed, they could be inexhaustible.

[CrispyQ]

3. But we aren't managing them, are we?

We're rapaciously exploiting them, along with all our resources. That makes them a finite resource.

But thanks for the snark. x(

[OKIsItJustMe]

4. I honestly wasn't trying to be snarky

We have treated all of these things as inexhaustible. That's the tragedy.

[CrispyQ]

5. And I should have my morning coffee before I go online.

Then there's this:

Ocean Acidification - And Why The Denialists Just Don't Want To Talk About It
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=115x236219

~sigh. I have little hope that our species will do what's required to pull out of this downward spiral.