Angling For Change
Cod and oysters: tastes our grandchildren may not savour
James Randerson, science correspondent
Friday November 3, 2006
The Guardian
The sensuous thrill of an oyster washed down with a cool, crisp white wine. The treat of battered cod and chips on a drizzly night after closing time. Your grandchildren will taste neither of these delights, or indeed any wild-caught seafood, if industrial fishing continues at its current rate, according to a huge analysis of the health of the world's oceans.
Projecting current fishing levels into the future, the researchers predict that all stocks will have collapsed by 2048. "We asked, 'if this trend which has been very strong and very consistent over the last 50 years were to continue, where ... would we end up?'" said Boris Worm, a marine biologist at Dalhousie University in Halifax, Canada, who led the study. "And the answer is you end up with no seafood."
The team looked at data from the UN Food and Agriculture Organisation and other sources. Between 1950 and 2003, 29% of fish and invertebrate fisheries within all 64 large marine ecosystems worldwide had collapsed. These regions account for 83% of the world's seafood harvest. Projecting these trends into the future, all stocks decline by at least 90% (the definition of a fishery collapse) by 2048. "Biodiversity is a finite resource. We can predict when we are going to run out of species," said Professor Worm.
One feature of marine ecosystems that emerged from the analysis was that as more species are lost, the collapse of the remaining species becomes more likely. "You are also losing the ability of the system to self-repair and recover."
And there are economic benefits of protecting diversity. When the team looked at the impact of designating protected areas they found that preventing fishing boosted biodiversity by 23%. More surprisingly, around the protected areas the catch for fishermen increased fourfold.
"This analysis provides the best documentation I have ever seen regarding biodiversity's value," said Peter Kareiva, lead scientist for the Nature Conservancy. "There is no way the world will protect biodiversity without this type of compelling data demonstrating the economic value of biodiversity."
The challenge will be whether decision-makers heed the message. "Unless we fundamentally change the way we manage all the ocean's species together, as working ecosystems, then this century is the last century of wild seafood," said co-author Steve Palumbi of Stanford University. "The data show us it's not too late," said Prof Worm. "We can turn this around. But less than 1% of global ocean is effectively protected right now."
In numbers
29% Percentage of currently fished species collapsed (below 10% of original population) by 2003
2048 When all commercial species will have collapsed if trends continue
13% Decline in global fishing yields since 1994
100 Number of times greater the economic value of the Great Barrier Reef is than its value as fishing resource
[X-posted to ukvegans]
James Randerson, science correspondent
Friday November 3, 2006
The Guardian
The sensuous thrill of an oyster washed down with a cool, crisp white wine. The treat of battered cod and chips on a drizzly night after closing time. Your grandchildren will taste neither of these delights, or indeed any wild-caught seafood, if industrial fishing continues at its current rate, according to a huge analysis of the health of the world's oceans.
Projecting current fishing levels into the future, the researchers predict that all stocks will have collapsed by 2048. "We asked, 'if this trend which has been very strong and very consistent over the last 50 years were to continue, where ... would we end up?'" said Boris Worm, a marine biologist at Dalhousie University in Halifax, Canada, who led the study. "And the answer is you end up with no seafood."
The team looked at data from the UN Food and Agriculture Organisation and other sources. Between 1950 and 2003, 29% of fish and invertebrate fisheries within all 64 large marine ecosystems worldwide had collapsed. These regions account for 83% of the world's seafood harvest. Projecting these trends into the future, all stocks decline by at least 90% (the definition of a fishery collapse) by 2048. "Biodiversity is a finite resource. We can predict when we are going to run out of species," said Professor Worm.
One feature of marine ecosystems that emerged from the analysis was that as more species are lost, the collapse of the remaining species becomes more likely. "You are also losing the ability of the system to self-repair and recover."
And there are economic benefits of protecting diversity. When the team looked at the impact of designating protected areas they found that preventing fishing boosted biodiversity by 23%. More surprisingly, around the protected areas the catch for fishermen increased fourfold.
"This analysis provides the best documentation I have ever seen regarding biodiversity's value," said Peter Kareiva, lead scientist for the Nature Conservancy. "There is no way the world will protect biodiversity without this type of compelling data demonstrating the economic value of biodiversity."
The challenge will be whether decision-makers heed the message. "Unless we fundamentally change the way we manage all the ocean's species together, as working ecosystems, then this century is the last century of wild seafood," said co-author Steve Palumbi of Stanford University. "The data show us it's not too late," said Prof Worm. "We can turn this around. But less than 1% of global ocean is effectively protected right now."
In numbers
29% Percentage of currently fished species collapsed (below 10% of original population) by 2003
2048 When all commercial species will have collapsed if trends continue
13% Decline in global fishing yields since 1994
100 Number of times greater the economic value of the Great Barrier Reef is than its value as fishing resource
[X-posted to ukvegans]