Priorities for Fish

[smoswald2]

In addition to reducing fishing effort, creating no-fishing zones, global protection of unmanageable species, and protecting the bottom of the food chain, I think measures to limit certain fishing gear would be beneficial.
Trawling is extremely destructive and is responsible for the decimation of many marine organisms. While effective for fishing, the amount of bycatch from trawling is devastating. When organisms like coral and sponges are removed from the ecosystem, silt is now free to move around and enter the water column. Sponges and coral are much like trees on land, they hold the ocean floor together. When the water column becomes more silty, organisms that need clear water are negatively impacted. Trawling essentially levels the 3D structure of coral reefs reducing what was once diverse habitat to mud and sand.
Despite the negative impacts on trawling being recorded ever since it was invented, it’s still in widespread use today. More and more habitat is being destroyed and because of this, changes in food webs have been observed. There are areas that are no longer productive because of trawling, yet trawls still fish those areas. If we banned harmful fishing practices like trawling, then impacted species would possibly have a chance to recover. There are some regions that have been so heavily impacted that there is probably no hope for them being anything like they previously were, but that doesn’t mean that there’s no hope at all. Areas that could still recover would benefit from trawling being banned or at least severely limited.

[ramaldonado]

I think this a great idea for a 5th priority. I definitely believe that the fishing industry, as large as it is, should put some of their attention into developing better, more ecologically friendly equipment. There is a lot to be said about the fish that are caught with these vessels and equipment, but even more to be said about the amount of fish and other species that are being destroyed due to bycatch. I think putting a ban on these fishing equipment would give the industry the incentive to invest in better, less harmful equipment, and I believe that will definitely help a lot of our depleting fish species recover.

[kmingo2]

I agree that limiting and regulating the types of gear we use for fishing would be really beneficial to the marine environments. However, the fishing gear industry is a multi-million dollar industry and there would be significant amount of backlash. Additionally, trying to enforce regulations on types of fishing gear in use would be difficult in remote areas. Though, all of the ways to help our environment involve large amount of effort.

[khteets]

I definitely agree with you that there need to be certain limits on fishing gear and that it can greatly impact the organisms or fish around the damaged areas it leaves behind. There’s a ton of things to go on about this but also think, you shouldn’t focus on it all since not all of it is damaging or harmful to the wildlife and environment around it. This is a great idea but maybe narrow the topic down a little instead of including more what’s truly needed.

[imatsui]

I didn’t know trawling has that much negative impact on ocean. And I agree, we should rethink about how much damage that is causing. Not only how much fish we are catching but how we catch is important thing to consider too.

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