Long-time readers will remember the saga of the ‘fish paper’ – my research piece on the sustainability and legality of European Union fisheries policy in West Africa, eventually published in the MIT International Review.
Fisheries being an area of acute concern for me, I was gratified to see an unusually hard-hitting column in this week’s Economist about fish and the EU. It argues that EU goverments have shown “abject cowardice” in relation to their fishers for years. Meanwhile, overcapacity and unsustainable quotas have put the industry into a “suicidal spiral.” The article reports straightforwardly that: “More subsidies would reduce the already slim chance that Europe will ever have a sustainable fishing industry.”
I have argued previously that fishing should never be subsidized. There are far too many dangers of people selfishly exploiting a common good even without them. Indeed, I don’t have much hope when it comes to the long-term viability of world fisheries. That being said, if more people develop the understanding and candour displayed in this article, perhaps the madness can eventually be brought to heel.
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The language there is definitely a lot harsher than their usual optimistic take on environmental issues. That said, pretty much everyone agrees that modern fishing is absurdly unsustainable. The evidence is everywhere and inescapable.
Poly (is that how you spell his name) is being interviewed on CBC radio tommorow. They are talking about fish all week.
Africa fish fall blamed on Japan
By Richard Black
Environment correspondent, BBC News website, Santiago, Chile
A coalition of conservation groups and a leading fisheries scientist have accused Japan of damaging the fisheries interests of poorer countries.
They say Japan promotes the argument that whales are responsible for declining fish stocks in order to boost support for whale hunting.
Pirate fishing boats target Africa
By Richard Black
Environment correspondent, BBC News website
There is a kind of theft that happens every day in a majority of the world’s poor countries – and in many of the richer ones too.
It usually happens out of sight, and most perpetrators get away with it.
The monetary value of this theft is about $15bn per year; the ecological cost can only be guessed at.
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