Fish Stock
Mike Grogan
SCI/275
4/10/10

The video tells the beliefs of 2 different individuals on two different sides of an argument. The problem is that the populations of fish are declining in the ocean. One viewpoint is the fact that the overfishing of large fish in the ocean has caused a massive decline in their numbers. The other viewpoint is that something else is causing the declining numbers not the fishing. The first viewpoint is that of a oceanographer and the second is a commercial fisherman.
Action Items | Action Steps | Timeline |
Research and identify the problem and possible solutions | Research the data on declining populationsVerify research conductedInterview researchers and fisherman of the thoughts and solutions | Months 1-3 |
Develop action plan Set up education | Gather experts from both areas to make sensible planDevelop an educational messageTake ideas and develop a plan for a solution Write up a new law of no fish zones | Months 3-6 |
Run the education messageSet plan in motion | Run the message for the decision makers members of the House and SenateIntroduce the law and try to regulate and sustain the fish | Months 6-9 |
Bill passed Education and enforcement begins | Developed new law Enacted new education plan and enforcement of no fish zones | Ongoing |
I think that restricting access to certain parts the habitat will help to let the fish recover from the extra demand for them . I think that is better than completely stopping everyone from fishing for that type of fish completely. I think it will benefit the environmentalist because of the no fish zones limiting the amount of fish caught . I think it will not be what they want because it is not completely stopping the fishing for the declining fish. Fisherman will see this as a chance to retain their lively hood but will most likely not like the areas restricted because of the dense population there.
The way commercial fishing operates today is comparable to the strip-mining of the earth and clear-cutting of forests. Many parts of the ocean floor are being turned into “marine deserts” as huge, unselective nets drag the bottoms scooping up everything in their paths(Hall 2010). Trawling causes damage to every part of the Eco-system not just to the fish population it is a fact that 20% of the fish caught are thrown back dead or injured because they are the wrong type or wrong size(Hall 2010). Trawlers also dump an estimated 450,000 plastic containers, 52 million pounds of plastic packaging material and 298 million pounds of plastic fishing net into the sea each year. Plastic garbage is known to kill as many as a million sea creatures a year.
The loss of revenue is drastic I found a website that talks about a solution that is trying to be implemented to help the blue fin tuna. That is to ban the international trade of the tuna in combination with restriction of intake for the year from 13, 500 metric tons to 8,000 metric tons. The ban on trade would kill the hopes of American fisherman to get $7-$11 dollars a pound from Japan during peak season to $2-$3 dollars from the US(Fraser 2010). That is a big hit. That is unless the environmentalists start a campaign to keep bluefin off American menus like they did in the 90s with the “Give Swordfish a Break” campaign.
My community is not a commercial fishing community it is a big outdoorsy community that has several lakes and rivers in the area so fisherman will understand both sides of the issue.
Jobs will be lost because of the decrease loads and areas to fish, but both sides will be unhappy because it is not a all out ban for the environmentalists and it is not a simple restriction for the fisherman. I dont think that this is the all inclusive answer to the problem but I think that it is step in the right direction. Like the fisherman Pete Dupios in the video said about the plumber we cant just turn the water off at the street we need to fix the problem. He also said that commercial fisherman are willing to help where needed to keep the fish population holding steady to keep working.
In conclusion the solution to the problem is a difficult decision to come up with. To be able to make both parties agree with it and realize that it is the best solution for the resource is the biggest part of the problem. Most fisherman love what they do and want to keep working so they will do what it takes to keep the fish coming in.

REFERENCES:
“The National Fisherman Magazine” retrieved from the Web. Apr 10, 2010
http://www.nationalfisherman.com/top_news.aspItemID=1972&rcid=412&pcid=406&cid=412

“Earthsave Canada” retrieved from Web. Apr 10, 2010
http://www.earthsave.ca/articles/ethics/fish.html