Save the fish

Fish are the world's last wild food. But the aquatic species is now struggling to survive in the face of environment-indifferent policymaking and aggressive fishing practices. Even as seafood consumption has risen across the world, continued overfishing threatens to deplete fish stocks. Declining stocks, in turn, affects livelihoods of fishing communities, as much in Goa, Bengal and Gujarat in India as in the rest of the world.

According to reports, 32% of global fish stocks are over-exploited while as much as 90% of large species have been fished out. Ecologists warn overfishing is the single biggest threat to marine ecosystems. Our appetite for fish, fast exceeding the oceans' ecological limits, is devastating fragile marine ecosystems. Rightly, fingers have been pointed at the modern fishing industry's predatory techniques which far outmatch nature's ability to replenish stocks.

Instead of renewing environmental and marine resources, businesses and policymakers are mercilessly exploiting them. Relentless trawling by giant ships, equipped with sophisticated accessories from fish processing and packing plants to massive freezing systems, is rapidly endangering fish survival. Environmentalists argue that fisheries' decline is closely tied to a broader loss of marine biodiversity.

It's well proven that ecosystem diversity reduction lowers fish abundance. About one-third of once-viable coastal fisheries are now considered useless. To end predatory hunting practices, multi-pronged redressal strategies are urgent, including toughening and strict enforcement of existing fishing and environmental regulations.

We must stop the practice of ensuring the fishing industry access to fish stocks even without assessing the impact of aggressive trawling on marine life. Marine reserves and no-catch zones need protection to improve biodiversity and increase fish stocks in protected areas. To save the fish, we need to save the oceans and the environment.