Overfishing refers to a situation when fish are caught faster than their stocks can be replenished, leading to an overall depletion of fish populations that may result in their collapse. In 2018, the total global capture by fisheries reached the highest level ever recorded at 96.4 million tonnes – an increase of 5.4% from the average between 2014-2017. Not only does overfishing pose threats to the marine ecosystems, it also affects many people directly – especially those who greatly rely on fishing to make a living. Here are 19 overfishing facts you need to know.

—

19 Overfishing Facts You Should Know About

1. Fish and other seafood products provide vital nutrients for more than three billion people – or nearly 40% of the world’s population – and supply an income for 10-12% of the world’s population.

2. According to the World Bank, almost 90% of global marine fish stocks are fully exploited or overfished.

3. Global fish and seafood production has quadrupled over the past 50 years, and the average person now eats almost twice as much seafood as half a century ago.

4. The world’s largest fish producer and exporter is China while the EU is the world’s largest importer of fish and fish products. 

5. Between 1961 and 2016, the average annual increase in global food fish consumption (3.2%) outpaced population growth (1.6%).

6. As part of the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals 14 (SDG 14), the UN and FAO are working towards maintaining the proportion of fish stocks within biologically sustainable levels. 

7. The percentage of fish stocks within biologically sustainable levels in 2017 was 65.8%, far lower than that of 1990’s 90%.

8. Over the past 40 years, marine species have seen a decrease of 39%.

9. Illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing represents 12-28% of fishing worldwide- around 11-26 million tonnes of fish. 

10. Another problem related to overfishing is bycatch, whereby large amounts of unwanted sea animals are captured during the fishing for a particular species and then are discarded as waste, causing the unnecessary loss of billions of fish and sea creatures. 

11. About 38.5 million tonnes of bycatch results from the practice each year.

12. In a programme co-organised by the Global Environment Facility (GEF) and FAO, the promotion of non-entangling and ocean-friendly fish aggregating devices (FAD), which are floating devices that are used to lure fishes, has helped to greatly reduce levels of bycatch. Adjusting fishing practices through this programme reduced the mortality rate of marine mammals caught by Pakistani gillnet fisheries in the northern Arabian sea from 12 000 in 2013 to less than 200 in 2018. 

13. Among OECD countries, Italy gives the biggest subsidies per catch ton.

14. One of the most highly-caught fish is tuna, which reached its highest levels in 2018 with over 7.9 million tonnes. 

You might also like: 5 Sustainable Plant-Based Seafood Companies Leading the Way

15. The depletion of fish stocks greatly affects the fishing community; about 59.5 million people work in the primary sector of fisheries and aquaculture, according to a 2018 study.

16. Subsidies from the government (for fuel, fishing gear and building new vessels) often benefits large-scale fishing companies which indirectly encourages the use of fuel-intensive fishing and destructive fishing practices eg. deep-sea trawling. 

17. Researchers found that Illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing are sometimes related to more serious problems like human trafficking and slavery at sea. 

18. The Code of Conduct for Responsible Fisheries is a foundational agreement among the 194 FAO members nations on the regulated use of fisheries and aquaculture resources. In a 2018 questionnaire, most members, regional fishery bodies (RFBs) and selected NGOs expressed a strong opinion on improving management in marine and inland fisheries. 

19. The last of the facts about overfishing is that the 2030 Agenda by FAO targets the monitoring of fisheries and aquaculture in achieving food security and nutrition. It also aims for the sector’s use of natural resources in a biologically, economically and socially sustainable way.

Research for this article was conducted by Earth.Org research contributor Chloe Lam

The post What You Need to Know About Overfishing appeared first on Earth.Org.

Agroecology, similar to sustainable farming, is a scientific framework that integrates ecological concepts and human’s socio-economic system into agricultural productions. It aims to increase the interaction between plants, animals, and the environment for food security and nutrition. By utilising natural processes and limiting the use of chemicals, it allows agriculture to be more environmentally friendly while maintaining a stable supply of food with the use of sustainable measures. Thus, it plays an important role in minimising the environmental harm caused by food production as well as achieving multiple UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDG). 

—

Agroecology is a scientific discipline, studying how different components of the agroecosystem interact. It entails a set of practices targeted at optimising and stabilising yields through sustainable farming methods. It is also a social movement that promotes social justice, pursuing multifunctional roles of agriculture, nurturing identity and culture as well as enhancing the economic development of rural areas. According to the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations (FAO), “agroecology helps support food production and food security and nutrition while restoring the ecosystem services and biodiversity that are essential for sustainable agriculture.” Agroecological farming practises include but are not limited to the following: poly-cropping, crop rotation, integrated crop and livestock system and beneficial insect predators. These can combat problems caused by the current agricultural system, including extensive deforestation, water scarcities, decrease in biodiversity, soil depletion and increasing greenhouse gas emissions.

Modern food production has undergone massive development to feed the rapidly increasing global population, but our intensive agricultural system comes at a high ecological cost. For instance, the misuse of pesticide degrades soil quality and can lead to desertification. Consequently, more problems like the loss of biodiversity and the homogenisation of soil crops arise, a domino effect that further damages our environment and contributes to the intensifying of global warming. In addition to the environmental dangers posed by modern agriculture, the socio-economic needs of resource-poor farmers in rural areas have also been neglected. While some benefit from using purchased inputs such as synthetic fertilisers that increase yield gains, other small-scale farmers become vulnerable to debt for purchasing such products, especially those who live in places where climates are unstable which makes farmers more susceptible to crop failure. Adopting agroecological approaches enables farmers to develop appropriate local farming strategies for maintaining soil fertility that are environmentally sustainable (i.e. integrated soil fertility management that combines the use of organic and inorganic amendments) while at the same time being economically viable for them. 

In order to encourage countries to work towards sustainable agriculture and food systems on a global scale, the FAO identified 10 guiding principles of agroecology that highlight the important properties in implementing an agroecological system: 1) diversity, 2) co-creation and sharing of knowledge, 3) synergies, 4) efficiency, 5) recycling, 6) resilience, 7) human and social values, 8) culture and food traditions, 9) responsible governance and 10) circular and solidarity economy. These 10 elements are interdependent, making it vital for policymakers, practitioners and various stakeholders to be holistic when planning, managing and evaluating agroecological measures.  

You might also like: 10 Zero Waste Stores in Hong Kong

In relation to the above 10 guidelines by the FAO, the High Level Panel of Experts (HLPE) further consolidated a comprehensive “list of 13 agroecological principles that contributes to food security and nutrition directly and indirectly: 1) recycling, 2) input reduction, 3) soil health, 4) animal health, 5) biodiversity, 6) synergy, 7) economic diversification, 8) co-creation of knowledge, 9) social values and diets, 10) fairness, 11) connectivity, 12) land and natural resources governance and 13) participation. Taking principle 9 as an example, building a food system based on the culture, identity, tradition, social and gender equity of local communities encourages the provision of healthy, diversified, seasonally and culturally appropriate diets, which impacts nutrition. Principles 7, 8, 10 and 11 promote a just food system that addresses problems like wages and working conditions. By creating a fairer agricultural system, farmers’ livelihoods can be improved through increasing the proportion of value-added agriculture (concerned with producers capturing a greater share of revenue), decreasing the proximity between local producers and consumers and eventually enhancing local economies. 

More and more farmers are shifting from chemical intensive single-crop farming to agroecological production methods to develop sustainable agriculture and build more resilient rural livelihoods. The MagosVölgy Ecological Farm in Hungary successfully puts agroecology into practise, utilising local resources for a more sustainable farming. The founders adopted intercropping methods and are financially supported by the FAO. Working together, the ecological farm is able to connect to markets, share agroecological information and techniques with other practitioners and maintain a small-scale sustainable food production for urban people. In 2016, they produced around 30 species and 100 varieties of organic vegetables with the use of environmentally friendly techniques, like using compost-mulch permanent beds and planting disease-resistant fruit trees. 

The director-general of the Food and Agriculture Organisation, José Graziano da Silva, called for actions towards healthier and more sustainable food systems. He says, “We need to promote a transformative change in the way that we produce and consume food. We need to put forward sustainable food systems that offer healthy and nutritious food, and also preserve the environment. Agroecology can offer several contributions to this process.” It is, therefore, imperative for every stakeholder, especially policy makers, to engage in creating a more harmonious future and to work together towards ensuring sustainable food production.

The post What is Agroecology? appeared first on Earth.Org.

Trophy hunting is the shooting of big game animals such as rhinos, elephants, big cats and bears for one’s pleasure. These animals are killed for their body parts to be displayed as ornaments to show off one’s power and success of the hunt. It remains one of the most controversial topics in the conversation about wildlife: while some people are greatly concerned about the violation of animal rights, others claim that trophy hunting aids animal conservation efforts. 

—

How Does it Work?

Trophy hunting is a commercial operation that involves consumers paying for hunting experiences, usually in Africa. Professional hunters usually lure these wild animals with bait and then collect their trophies (the animal’s body parts) after shooting the animal. Canned hunting is another form of trophy hunting in which wild animals (usually lions) are raised in captivity to be shot by hunters. 

Between 2005 and 2014, more than 1.26 million wildlife trophies were imported to the US alone, averaging to approximately 126 000 animals killed and imported into the US each year. Between 2008 and 2017, nearly 40 000 animal trophies from African elephants, just over 8 000 from leopards, and 14 000 from African lions were exported worldwide.

Trophy Hunting Supports Conservation Work?

WWF recognises the possible economic benefits to animal conservation brought by trophy hunting, but only if it clearly demonstrates both community and conservation benefits and adheres to the minimum conservation standards outlined by their policy on trophy hunting regulations. One of the often quoted benefits of trophy hunting is that it can generate large sums of money which provide financial incentives to communities, landowners and authorities to protect the animals and use land for wildlife conservation instead of agriculture, for example. 

Despite the income generated by these rich hunters who pay exorbitant fees to bring home their “trophies,” it is unclear whether this money really goes into supporting sustainable animal conservation projects due to a lack of monitoring bodies. Additionally, the hunting companies’ contribution to local community development is minimal. According to an analysis by the International Council for Game and Wildlife Conservation and the UN Food and Agriculture Organization, hunting companies contribute an estimated 3% of their earnings to local communities who are affected by hunting activities. Moreover, the trophy hunting industry does not have a huge economic impact on the local GDP compared to the tourism industry. The Humane Society International says that the hunting industry generates less than $132 million a year, about 0.03% of the studied regions’ GDP, whereas the income generated from the overall tourism industry makes up between 2.8% and 5.1% of GDP (around $17 billion) in the eight studied countries.  The income generated by trophy hunting pales in comparison to that of tourism and wildlife walkthroughs. 

However, some research refutes the conservation benefits of trophy hunting. While trophy hunts can cost tens of thousands of dollars, very little of that money goes back into the community or into conservation programmes. Currently, there is no research showing how any breeding facility or canned hunting operation has made any significant contribution to uplifting communities.

Additionally, the animals targeted for trophies are often not surplus animals, but are some of the most endangered species on the planet. Lion populations, for example, have been decimated by trophy hunting among other threats. A 2019 report noted that 40% of the big game hunting zones in Zambia and 72% in Tanzania are now classified as depleted solely because the big game has been hunted out of the area.

The Case of Cecil the Lion

In July 2015, Cecil the lion was shot dead by Walter Palmer, a dentist and trophy hunter, with an arrow in Zimbabwe. According to reports, Cecil was being lured with an elephant carcass, which allowed the professional hunters to injure him with arrows. Palmer then killed Cecil with a second arrow, but not before the lion suffered for 10-12 hours. The tragic death of Cecil enraged the international community since he was well-known among locals and was actually collared by scientists as part of a study. The United States Fish and Wildlife Service fined Palmer USD$3 000 and charged him with a year’s probation. Sadly, Cecil’s son, Xanda, was shot on a legal trophy hunt 2 years later.

You might also like: Hidden Gems: What are Halophyte Plants?

Negative Impacts of Trophy Hunting

• Disruption to the Ecosystem

If the dominant male lion of a pride is killed, lionesses and cubs will become vulnerable to another lion that may take over the pride and kill all the juvenile lions of the previous leader. Not only does this endanger the comparatively weaker lions, it also disrupts the social structure and the survival chances of these groups. “Trophy hunters select the lions with the biggest manes because they make the most impressive trophies. These are also the strongest and fittest animals,” says Eduardo Goncalves, founder of the Campaign To Ban Trophy Hunting. The killing of the strongest lions means that future generations will have a lower survival chance when facing harsh environmental changes since these adult lions cannot pass down their high-quality genes. Killing lionesses also exposes their cubs to the danger of starvation. Ultimately, the number of lions may drop, further pushing them near the brink of extinction if the situation continues. 

• Neglecting Animal Rights

Often, hunters use painful weapons like bows, arrows, handguns and muzzle-loaders to wound the animals, causing them to suffer excruciating pain before dying. These animals are separated from their groups which may result in immense stress to the remaining family members. Most importantly, trophy hunters hunt for human pleasure instead of conservational causes which is not justifiable.

Effectiveness of Banning Trophy Hunting

Some countries such as South Africa and Kenya have imposed restrictions and a complete ban on trophy hunting respectively. Despite having banned trophy hunting completely since 1977, Kenya continues to show a stable growth in tourism alongside other regions that still allow trophy hunting activities, further demonstrating the unclear significance of trophy hunting in the context of overall tourism revenues. Another study done in South Luangwa National Park in Zambia reported that there was an increase in the number of cubs born each year upon implementation of the ban. The number of adult male lions also grew significantly, from 116 lions in 2012 to 209 in 2015. 

What Can We Do To End Trophy Hunting?

• Sign petitions to push authorities to ban trophy hunting e.g. The Prohibiting Threatened and Endangered Creature Trophies (ProTECT) Act.
• Encourage local governments to ban the import of trophies by writing to them.
• Raise awareness among people you know and use social media.

The post What is Trophy Hunting? appeared first on Earth.Org.