So Much For Fish & Chips: Greenpeace List Of Most Over-fished Species
by Kimberley D. Mok, Nomad on 03.11.08
Rampant overfishing in the high seas and its detrimental effects on marine ecosystems is hardly anything new: with a generous smattering of indications here and there of trouble ahead for the world’s oceans, including a relatively recent report warning that without drastic action, all wild seafood could disappear within fifty years.
Now, in addition to its highly-publicized and dramatic anti-whaling efforts, Greenpeace has upped the ante by launching a campaign targeting a list of twenty-two over-fished ‘red’ species currently being sold by suppliers and eaten by consumers. According to their website, the aim is to “start at the source” and confront and stop supermarkets from carrying these endangered species. Some of the species most threatened by overfishing currently include Atlantic Halibut, the Monkfish, all sharks, and Blue Fin Tuna.
Other animals not usually associated with the seafood industry are also affected, with inadvertent by-catches claiming loggerhead turtles, sharks, dolphins and whales. "No-where in management plans do we budget for marine mammals, birds and other fish that are killed as by-catch," says Phil Kline, a Greenpeace oceans campaigner, noting that the Alaskan Pollock fisheries for instance has already triggered declines other populations, including the endangered Northern Fur Seal.
Five different criteria were used by Greenpeace to identify species in the ‘red’: first, the status of the fish, whether they are threatened or endangered; second, whether destructive fishing methods are used (such as bottom trawling); third, whether harvesting the fish has negative impact on non-target species through by-catch; fourth, whether fish are caught illegally by unregulated fishing operations (or “pirate fishing”); and fifth, whether the fishery involved negatively impacts on local communities which depend on fishing for their livelihoods.
In addition to the ‘red list’, Greenpeace is also encouraging the designation of 40% of oceans as “no-take” zones (instead of the current 1%) in order to allow fish stocks to recover.
Conscientious seafood consumers take note – here are the twenty-two ‘red’ species:
Alaska Pollock
Atlantic Cod or Scrod
Atlantic Halibut (US and Canadian)
Atlantic Salmon (wild and farmed)
Atlantic Sea Scallop
Bluefin tuna
Big Eye Tuna
Chilean Sea Bass (also sold as Patagonia Toothfish)
Greenland Halibut (also sold as Black halibut, Atlantic turbot or Arrowhead flounder)
Grouper (imported to the U.S.)
Hoki (also known as Blue Grenadier)
Monkfish
Ocean Quahog
Orange Roughy
Red Snapper
Redfish (also sold as Ocean Perch)
Sharks
Skates and Rays
South Atlantic Albacore Tuna
Swordfish
Tropical Shrimp (wild and farmed)
Yellowfin Tuna
See also ::U.S. and WWF Push for Ban on Tuna Fishing, ::Loss of Deep-Sea Species Could Precipitate Oceans' Future Collapse, ::Will A Global Network Of Marine Reserves Reverse Troubling Trends In The Sea?, ::The 10 Solutions to Save the Oceans
Image: Greenpeace
"Farmed" Atlantic salmon and shrimp are on this list? I thought farmed animals were a relatively controlled environment. Can anyone educate me on how these fit in this list?
Is there a list of fish that are OK to eat? Practically speaking it's easier for me to keep in mind a couple "good" fish to eat than dozens of "bad" ones.
I sent in data for that. Everyone in the markets was suspicious of me, walking aound with paper and pencil, not buying anything. They really hated it when I started handing of PETA cards.
The Monterey Bay Aquarium is the authority on this...they have pocket guides here...
http://www.mbayaq.org/cr/cr_seafoodwatch/download.asp
that make it easy. You can also search www.seafoodwatch.org on your cell phone and get it directly while you're sitting in the restaurant.
Hmm...Anastasia's (handy) Monterey guide correlates quite closely with Greenpeace, with the exception of Alaskan Pollock, which it not only lists as being a "Best" choice but footnotes it as being "certified sustainable" by the Marine Stewardship Council.
Anybody know more about pollock? What's the discrepancy from?
How sad that just below this article is advertising for some of the very endangered fish Greenpeace wants us to avoid eating.
I second using the Monterey Bay Aquarium site. I've been using it for the past few years and its been a great help in choosing fish to eat.
Trout and Alaskan Salmon are conspicuously not on the red list. So if you are looking for a "safe" fish to eat regularly then those are probably ok.
Pollock is still controversial. Greenpeace was against the certification from the outset.
Pro pollock (a short list)
-low bycatch to target fish (pollock) ratios
-management produces regular assessments of the health of the population
-huge population of pollock
Anti pollock (also short and not complete)
-total bycatch is very high because so much pollock is caught
-pollock is at the base of the food chain in Alaska and its fishing may be harming the endangered Steller sea lion
-a couple of the pollock populations are not doing well, and the fishery remains, primarily, in the 1 remaining population.
Farmed fish:
they can be good or bad, depending on how they're farmed. Open cages or ponds can pollute the water, escaped fish can lead to invasive species, many fish require fish in their feed which doesn't take pressure off of marine fish, shrimp farms, in particular, can lead to the destruction of mangrove forests, fish farmed in poor conditions need antibiotics to keep them healthy, and diseases from in the farms can be transferred to wild fish.
Not all fish farms have these problems, though. Some species are just more suitable for farming and tolerate worse conditions without getting sick, other farmers are more responsible.
For more information visit www.edf.org/seafood
Thanks, Tea -- great info.
A new and fully science-based source of information on the status of domestic fisheries and fish species is at http://www.nmfs.noaa.gov/fishwatch/
-- whether or not you believe "the government", many people find this credible and useful - it is becoming more and more popular as people discover it.
Enjoy!
Jim