Fishermen and Conservationists Unite

Hey, folks, what are some other ways that environmentalists and conservationists can or should use markets to achieve their goals? Or should they stick clear of market-oriented tactics?

What do you think?

Jonathan, I think this a great solution to a very big problem. Commercial fishing techniques like trawling, sein netting, gill netting, long-lining and, the worst of all, mid-water trawling are so destructive to the marine environment. Not only are they destructive to the environment, but they destroy the natural resource that their industry relies upon.

They also do a huge amount of damage for recreational fishermen. Many current laws (from Massachusetts to Alaska) have very strict limits on recreational fishermen, but have no such limits on the commercial side. Looking at the laws, it's clear who has the money and lobbying powers to influence lawmakers.

In Florida, they outlawed all commercial net fishing and long-lining in the 90's. Before this constitutional amendment was passed by the voters, the swordfish population was negligible because of these non-disriminatory commercial practices. It's been amazing to see how the swordfish population has flourished in such a short amount of time because of this ban. Recreational fishermen have taken advantage and now recreational swordfishing (rod and reel) is very popular again. Many commercial fishermen have realized converted into charter fishermen and have come to realize that there is more money to be made on the recreational side because of the huge amount of tourism in our state.

I think the environmentalists and conservationists need to do a better job working with the recreational and sportfishing side to influence laws that allow for recreational fishing to flourish, while increasing limits on commercial fishing methods and poundage taken by species. You can't eliminate commercial fishing altogether because of market forces, but there needs to be a focus on developing better methods that are more discriminatory about targeting a species. The focus need to be on sustainability of our marine resources.

Yes, this is evidence of consciousness and intelligence at work, but what about the other six billion people? What about dams that kill salmon runs, mercury in fish, air and water? What about the poisoning of our rivers? what about the patents granted to life, itself?
When the Nature Conservancy is able to stop all whaling, all nations' trawling, all dumping of nuclear waste in the oceans, then I'll begin to stop worrying about industrial civilization and short-term thinking killing every living thing on the planet, just like they did on Mars, so many aeons ago. Want Earth to look like Mars? Keep voting Republican.
I'm sorry to be so grumpy, but this is literally a drop in the bucket. While the Conservancy freed up the fishing grounds, Congress opened all the waters from Maine to Florida to oil drilling.
We humans are fouling the nest, a sure sign of fundamental unsuitability for continued life.
marty

I'm not sure how this works, but if the harvested tonnage goes down over the next few years from this buy-out, what is going to keep the government(?) from issuing more permits?
I have seen pictures of what this type of fishing does to the bottom of the sea, and it isn't pretty. Is this currently the only way to catch a particular species of fish? If not, maybe monies could be used to help fisherman switch over to a better way, instead of buying more permits out. Again, I don't really know what I am talking about as far as commercial fishing goes. Thanks.

Thanks for this article! I recently saw a really disturbing documentary on LinkTV, called "One More Dead Fish" about the factory ships' effects on Canada's fishermen from Grand Banks and on the marine life in that area. If you're interested in the future of fishing, it's a significant film to see.

One thing you can do to encourage more ecologically-friendly fishing methods is to buy fresh fish at a market, instead of buying frozen pre-formed fish cakes or fish sticks. The majority of travel catch is turned into fish sticks and fish fillets for the fast food and freezer market, or into "surimi", a fish and flour paste that's shaped into a crab substitute.

It seems to me that we're so accustomed to low-cost meat proteins in the USA, and we've gotten such low-quality meats to show for it...if you limit your intake, and spend your money on better, sensibly-raised or harvested food, you get a much better product for your health and for the environment.

That's a great point Tina, but don't assume that harvested fish is the solution. With farm-raised salmon for example, I would rather never eat fish again than eat farm-raised salmon. It is injected with dye to make it pink, and it is injected with flavor to make it taste like salmon. It also has elevated levels of carcinogens. Any salmon you see at the grocery store that's labeled "Atlantic Salmon" is farm-raised. Atlantic Salmon are nearly extinct and not available in the wild. Chilean salmon is also farm-raised.

Martin - I also find your comment rather odd. Just because you can't solve all the world's problems, doesn't mean you shouldn't try to solve one. In addition, commercial fishing practices kill many marine mammals. It's not just whaling that kills whales. These nets kill whales too. Sonar from large cruise ships and navy ships and subs is also a problem.

Agreed, Kat, there's no reason for dread or despair, Martin. The fact that environmentalists and conservationists are able to tap into public tools, the economy, government, and dedicated individuals like us means that there are daily, if not hourly success stories. Some have less impact than this aprticular announcement, but some have much more.

Taken together, I personally think that America and the world are beginning to develop a true conservation ethic. What do y'all think?

Kat, I totally agree...we don't go in for farmed fish at all. Even if wedid want to eat the fish, the runoff from seafood farms is horrible for the environment. It's just no bargain.

The sad thing is that we used to catch our own fish, but the trips are hardly worth it anymore. And while I am bowled over by how much fish costs, it's not worth it to me to save some money by eating the messed-around with stuff, whether it's farmed or moushed up into some fish filet shape by machine. Yech!

Absolutely Tina. We are fortunate to live on the coast of Florida and my husband loves to fish. After eating fresh-caught fish, I never buy it in the store and I rarely order it in a restaurant, save for a few local places that I know only use locally-caught fish on rod and reel. If my husband catches more than we can eat in one day, we typically share it with friends and neighbors or we have a vacuum sealer so we can freeze and it still stays fresh.

That's awesome, Kat. If there wasn't so much money involved in fishing commercially, then it wouldn't be a problem. But, I think as the industry gets older, there will be more and more regulation passed, making it better for the marine environment. Great article Jonathan! Hopefully this really works, and fisherman start using safer methods or stay out of depleted areas.

Tom mentioned a key point, the money. Not all that many years back, the US noticed that the government subsidized foreign factory fleets were harvesting our coasts. At that time, we had basically family fishing operations with single operator owned boats doing the fishing...and very little relative damage because the boats were rather small and did not have the electronic fish finding ability that now exists.

So when our government extended our boundaries from 12 miles to a couple hundred (250?), that made it time for our Corporate interests to get involved. Special interest Legislation changed the laws, and banks encouraged loans to build up the 'local' fleet. That resulted in Huge very expensive vessels with the most efficient gear exponentially increasing the catch rate and damage to the ecosystem as the former modest family operations were forced out and some few found employment with the 'big guys'. But the real problem is world wide population increase and the increased market needs. So shortage increases price and that increases more competition that pressures the supply...and on and on...

I personally would like to see the laws changed so those within the coastal areas are restricted to smaller vessels owned and operated by the family involved, not corporate and large (rich) business interests.

Make the local industry a viable and honorable vocation again...just a thought, having a long history of and interest in that small industry of the past.