Overfishing 101: Why Ending Overfishing is Good for Both Fish and Fishermen Alike

Article By: Lee Crockett Read time:
Overfishing 101: Why Ending Overfishing is Good for Both Fish and Fishermen Alike

As a lifelong angler, I'm the first to admit that fishing can inspire passionate arguments about where, when and how to fish. But decisions about how to rebuild our depleted fish populations must be based on science and facts, not emotion or ideology.

In this post, I'd like to explore a few arguments that some people use to make the case for weakening the laws designed to end overfishing.

Myth #1 - Fisheries management can only be deemed successful when fishermen are catching fish, businesses are serving fishermen and fish populations are healthy and rebuilding.

If we rebuild all of our fish populations to healthy levels, we have indeed achieved success, for they are the foundation upon which fishing businesses and fishermen can thrive. Fishermen and their communities need healthy marine populations for successful businesses and great catches. According to a recent study by the University of British Columbia's Fishery Economics Unit, the economic value of many U.S. fisheries could triple by 2016, but only if federal managers stick to the congressionally mandated guideline of rebuilding depleted populations.[i] 

But to achieve these benefits, the nation must set firm catch limits based on sound science and enforce them. Sacrificing conservation for short-term economic gain is not the answer. Congress has rejected this course since 1996, when it prohibited setting unsustainably high fishing levels for purely financial reasons. It did so again in 2006 when it passed legislation to block a federal court decision allowing overfishing in the early stages of a rebuilding plan to minimize economic impacts.[ii]

Myth #2 - U.S. fisheries management is inflexible, dominated by bureaucrats located hundreds of miles away from fishing communities and doesn't include input from local stakeholders.

Many people do not realize that fisheries management decisions in the U.S., including rebuilding plans and yearly quotas, are primarily driven by regional stakeholders through the eight regional fishery management councils located in New England, the Mid-Atlantic, the South Atlantic, the Gulf of Mexico, the Caribbean, Pacific, North Pacific and Western Pacific regions. These councils include representatives from the coastal states, commercial and recreational fishermen, federal government agencies and others with expertise in fisheries management in the region.

The council system is designed to solicit input for decisions from fishermen and other stakeholders throughout the management process. The general public also has an opportunity to help shape management plans by participating in committee meetings, making statements at public hearings and providing written comments to the councils.

Bottom line—though the MSA has clear mandates to end overfishing and rebuild depleted fish populations, regions have latitude under the law to achieve these goals in a manner that works best for their specific fisheries and communities.

Myth #3 - The methods used by the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) to collect recreational fishing data result in serious inaccuracies.

To collect data on recreational fishing the government monitors catch at the dockside, and through self-reported data from logbooks, catch cards and telephone surveys. Fisheries managers consistently strive for even better ways to count recreational catches.

For example, a revised collection system for recreational data—the Marine Recreational Information Program—has been underway since January 2007. This program is helping to improve dockside catch monitoring, self reporting and targeted telephone surveys.[iii]

In addition to data on recreational fishing participation, other sources that go into scientific assessments include:[iv]

  • Data collected by government research vessels on the distribution and abundance of fish from eggs to adults. This category includes the size, age, sex and biological characteristics of the fish sampled.
  • Data from commercial and recreational fishermen that quantify the number, size, sex, age and distribution of the fish brought back to shore and those that are discarded at sea.

The Pew Environment Group is working with NMFS and Congress to improve data collection, and with the scientific community to develop new ways to collect recreational fishing data.

Next time, I'll take a closer look at the charge that fisheries managers are making decisions based on bad science.

 

Footnotes

i U.R. Sumaila et al., "Fish Economics: The Benefits of Rebuilding U.S. Ocean Fish Populations," Fisheries Economic Research Unit, Fisheries Centre, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, B.C. (October 2005), www.feru.org/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/publications/Sumaila2005_RebuildingBenefitsUSA.pdf.
ii Oceana, Inc. v. Evans, No. 04-811, 2005 WL 555416 (D.D.C. Mar. 9, 2005)
iii NOAA, Marine Recreational Information Program (MRIP) website: https://www.countmyfish.noaa.gov/.
iv NMFS, FishWatch website, "Fisheries Management": http://www.nmfs.noaa.gov/fishwatch/management.htm.

RELATED
Topics
Ocean Conservation
America’s Overdose Crisis
America’s Overdose Crisis

America’s Overdose Crisis

Sign up for our five-email course explaining the overdose crisis in America, the state of treatment access, and ways to improve care

Sign up
Quick View
America’s Overdose Crisis

America’s Overdose Crisis

Sign up for our five-email course explaining the overdose crisis in America, the state of treatment access, and ways to improve care

Sign up

ADDITIONAL RESOURCES

A worker in a seafood market dumps bright orange shrimp from a blue bin onto a bed of ice between a lot of other seafood laid out for sale. Other workers are visible in the background, as are the arms of shoppers placing orders from the other side of the ice bed.

Article

April 22, 2024 Seafood Industry Benefits From Greater Vessel Transparency
An aerial view of a vast wetland, with scattered vegetation visible on sandy islands.

Article

April 19, 2024 In Western Australia, a Conservation Model for the World
A large group of people in formal or traditional attire stands together on a stage, with a digital background depicting marine life and the large text “WTO Agreement on Fisheries Subsidies.”

Article

April 10, 2024 WTO Needs to Redouble Its Effort on Fishing Subsidies

MORE FROM PEW

A presentation being given by a businesswoman to a group of participants at a business conference. Four Plan Features Can Boost 'Retirement Readiness'
An illustration of a couple holding hands walking away from an outline of houses behind them Pathways to Homeownership: Housing in America
A photograph of City Hall in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Philadelphia to Address Pressing Policy Challenges
A bright blue T-cell infected by HIV is engulfed by hundreds of yellow virions. Pew Researcher Seeks to Crack Code on HIV Cure
Composite image of modern city network communication concept

Learn the Basics of Broadband from Our Limited Series

Sign up for our four-week email course on Broadband Basics
Quick View

How does broadband internet reach our homes, phones, and tablets? What kind of infrastructure connects us all together? What are the major barriers to broadband access for American communities?

Pills illustration
Pills illustration

What Is Antibiotic Resistance—and How Can We Fight It?

Sign up for our four-week email series The Race Against Resistance.
Quick View
Pills illustration

Antibiotic-resistant bacteria, also known as “superbugs,” are a major threat to modern medicine. But how does resistance work, and what can we do to slow the spread? Read personal stories, expert accounts, and more for the answers to those questions in our four-week email series: Slowing Superbugs.