Unsustainable fishing has been a topic of great debate in the past few decades. Life in the oceans has taken multiple left turns in an attempt to adapt and keep up with the rapid changes that our human species cause. The illegal fish trade alongside subsidized fisheries in many countries has caused a great imbalance in the marine food chain and nutrient transfer system that thousands of organisms depend on. Life is slowly losing its spark in the oceans as we cast our nets across the water, reeling in thousands of creatures that are integral to marine life systems. Fish populations are depleting, some approaching extinction. However, the expansive fish trade also plays a large role in the international economy and serves as a food source to almost 3 billion people worldwide. Clearly, there are many sides to the issue that need to be fully explored in order to reach a balanced solution.

The high seas are far away from our human-littered shores. Thousands of species thrive there from the large, peaceful whales to brooding, deep-water angler fish. The water can extend up to 10 km in-depth, making these oceans home to a whole spectrum of life forms. However, this is also the reason that we have been exploiting the ocean’s resources for so many years. Unsustainable fishing has been rampant in places all across the world from Japan to Iceland to the Mediterranean. Overfishing is defined as catching so many fish that the breeding population cannot recover from the loss. Overfishing is often synonymous with modern commercial fishing that tends to be wasteful. As fishing techniques have become more and more refined over the years, with better technology in our hands, it has become much easier to plow through the oceans and earn a great amount of revenue. Commerical, legal fishing has become increasingly transparent in certain countries, but there is still a great need for better regulation and control. Subsidies from the government for the fishing industry support fishermen, but also greatly drive overfishing. These subsidies can lead to wasteful fishing and overcapacity i.e fishing more than we need to. The difficulty in taking down the illegal trade system is also a major contributor to the increasing fishing activity. Illegal fishing is estimated to bring in a staggering $36.4 billion per year according to the WWF. Clearly, they make up a big part of the depletion of ocean organisms. Furthermore, the high seas are international waters, that do not have as much strict regulation for fishing. The difficulty in tracking the movement of fish stock from fishermen to consumers is a very big issue.

Of course, unsustainable fishing deeply impacts the marine system. The breeding population of many fish species is unable to grow fast enough to keep up with how many of their kind are caught by humans every day. These fish are also an important food source in the wild for larger sea creatures, making them integral to the food chain. According to the Our Planet: High Seas episode on Netflix, the depleting number of fishes has caused squid populations to rise, causing significant changes to the food available to many marine animals. These animals have evolved to depend on fish populations for their health and survival, which squid cannot equivalently match. Marine creatures are also responsible for a lot of carbon sequestration which essentially means marine creatures lock away many carbon emissions that would otherwise be released to the atmosphere, contributing to rising CO2 levels. CO2 as we all know is a greenhouse gas that contributes to the warming of the Earth, which has been instrumental in causing our current climate change. So if the number of fishes falls, the amount of carbon emissions locked away decreases too, furthering climate change.

Many of the small fish that are caught in large numbers feed on algae, an essential of the oceanic ecosystem. While algae is not bad or harmful by itself, anything in very large quantities can turn out to be bad. With fewer and fewer fish around to feed on the algae, it can grow much more across the oceans and increase the acidity of the ocean, which can lead to further destruction of the oceanic ecosystem.

Another major impact of unsustainable fishing is the risk of extinction that many fishes and sea creatures face. The Bluefin tuna, a rare fish, and some of the ocean’s most tactful and agile hunters are worth millions in many countries, which has led to immense exploitation. They are currently under threat of extinction and are critically endangered according to the WWF. The lucrativeness of some parts of the fish trade can lead to greater incentives to engage in illegal trading. These tuna are important and prominent predators that are very important to the balance of the food chain. Other predators that are often hunted are sharks.

In the debate about unsustainable fishing, it is important to recognize the importance of fish stocks as a source of livelihood and food to many people. It can also be deliberated whether the consumption of seafood is necessary or not, but this deliberation must be contextualized by socio-economic climates. While people may actively make the choice to consume fish, many people who may not wish to consume fish cannot actually implement that choice. In coastal regions of developing nations, it can be difficult to gain access to or be able to afford alternatives to the nutrients one can get from fish. Fishing can be much more affordable to families as they are catching their own food, instead of having to pay for every part of their meal. They can make a living off of the seafood they sell. The fishing industry is a vital part of keeping many economies alive.

Ironically, however, overfishing for food consumption is actually making it more and more difficult for people to depend on fish for food, leading to economic insecurity. In the short term, we may have enough fish to feed those who depend on them as a food source, but if ocean populations are decreasing, eventually there will be no more fish to fish. Furthermore, commercial fisheries may fish in such large quantities in coastal regions, that the people that live there cannot find fish to catch for themselves.

At first glance, the effects on marine life and human beings may seem too contradictory to approach a good solution, but many organizations like the WWF have been taking action that works. The biggest solution to work towards is better regulation and policy. Their ‘Fishery Improvement Project’ draws information in from multiple stakeholders to push fishery towards the MSC standard. The Marine Stewardship Council certifies wild-caught fisheries against environmental standards, to ensure that the rate of fishing is not at a level that makes it difficult for the breeding populations to recover. They are simultaneously making sure that local fisheries are compensated or have enough fish stock so that no one experiences a great fall in revenue. There has also been advocacy from WWF at the United Nations and many other NGOs to eliminate harmful subsidies for the fishing industry that leads to wasteful overfishing. There also needs to be regulation to protect the small fisheries in coastal areas that are overpowered by large-scale commercial fishing. Another important solution addresses the threat of extinction by expanding marine protected areas. Many organizations currently harbor endangered species within a safe encampment where can safely breed and increase their numbers, before being safely released into the wild.

Unsustainable fishing poses a threat to marine ecosystems as well as the billions of people that depend on fish for food or livelihood. The impacts are enormous, ranging from the small fishes in the sea to the sharks, to the whales, to the people on the shores, and to the entire Earth system. Overfishing is a necessary reminder of how inter-connected our world truly is, where one overthought can lead to disastrous consequences for the future. Working to reduce unsustainable fishing is an important conversation to have, especially now, where the impacts of food scarcity and climate change are more evident than ever.

Sources:

1. “Bluefin Tuna.” WWF, World Wildlife Fund, www.worldwildlife.org/species/bluefin-tuna.
2. “What Is Overfishing? Facts, Effects and Overfishing Solutions.” WWF, World Wildlife Fund, www.worldwildlife.org/threats/overfishing.
3. “High Seas” Our Planet, written by David Attenborough et al., directed by Hugh Pearson, Netflix, 2019.