Overfishing is a huge environmental problem – the world’s oceans are losing their stocks of fish at a dramatic pace. Almost 80% of fish stock is fully- to over-exploited, depleted or in a state of collapse, which means bad news for the entire ocean ecosystem and the humans that depend upon fish for survival. Schools of fish are no match for the fishing industry’s modern technology, and many blame fishermen for unsustainable fishing practices.
Not so fast, say the stars of The Discovery Channel’s reality series ‘Deadliest Catch’. In a Reuters report, several of the show’s boat captains assert that small commercial fishermen shouldn’t take the fall for the problem.
Several fishing boat captains from the Emmy-nominated cable TV show say government bodies and fisheries need to set wiser fishing quotas to ensure healthy fish populations and a balanced food chain. The show’s fifth season finale airs on Tuesday on the Discovery Channel cable television network.
“When things go wrong, the fishermen get blamed, but the truth is we are only fishing what they tell us we can fish,” captain Phil Harris told Reuters, referring to the quotas that Alaskan crab fisherman like him are given at the beginning of each season setting limits to how much they can catch.
“It makes me so angry when people talk about overfishing. We have never overfished, they give us a quota and we catch it,” said captain Andy Hillstrand, who heads his family-owned vessel the “Time Bandit.” “People call fishermen greedy, but it is not their job to regulate it.”
For years, the fishing industry has rewarded large-scale operations for capturing vast quantities of fish – so they worked on methods and technology that would help them catch the largest amounts possible.
When the European Union put strict fishing quotas in place, unscrupulous fishermen responded by catching as many as they could and then dumping the less valuable species and smaller fish – which were dead by this point – back into the ocean to avoid fines. Fishermen claimed it was the only way they could make a living with such “ridiculously low quotas”.
Scientists, environmentalists and the commercial fishing industry have been unable to agree on a solution that works for everyone.
Link [Reuters]
