The Declining Fish Stock Problem

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The Declining Fish 1 The Declining Fish Stock Problem Charles Severs Axia College of University of Phoenix Sci 275 Environmental Science Instructor: Dr. Michael Smith December 9, 2007 The Declining Fish 2 The Declining Fish Stock Problem THE codfish were so thick in the water that “a boat could hardly be rowed through them.” So said explorer John Cabot in 1497 as he described one of the world’s richest fishing grounds—the Grand Banks of Newfoundland. By the late 1600’s, the annual catch of cod at Newfoundland had reached almost 100,000 metric tons. During the next century, the yield doubled. Today, however, the situation has changed dramatically. The codfish stock is now so depleted that in 1992 the Canadian government imposed its own ban on Atlantic cod fishing, leaving an estimated 35,000 people looking for work in other sectors. In 1997 the moratorium is still in effect. But where did all the codfish go? During the 1960’s, international fishing fleets converged on Newfoundland’s offshore banks to harvest huge quantities of cod. By 1968, trawlers from more than a dozen countries were taking 800,000 tons of fish a year from Newfoundland’s banks. This was three times the annual average catch for the previous century. While colder waters, the proliferation of seals, and the migration of codfish may also have played a part in the depletion of the codfish population, a large portion of blame for the cod disaster must be placed on human greed, or Over Fishing. What future is there for the Atlantic codfish, as well as all of the other fish that are being driven to extinction? Some doubt that there are enough young fish to mature, spawn, and replenish the species. For years man has fished the Ocean blue with the idea that “there are plenty of fish in the sea”. This thought has been challenged now for some time. While the price of fish is not the most important

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