Target: Samuel D. Rauch III, Deputy Assistant Administrator for Regulatory Programs, NOAA Fisheries
Goal: Decrease the volume of fish that can be harvested by industrial fishers.
Fish has been a dietary staple across the world for ages, and there does not seem to be a decline in consumption. Now more than ever, though, experts are noticing a decline in fish populations in locations where they traditionally have been plentiful for generations. Many may suggest the growing population of people is to blame for fishing nets coming up increasingly empty. However, the growth of industrial fishers taking over the waters is primarily responsible for increased prices and decreasing availability. This is a problem for two reasons.
First, industrial fishing boats’ large scale are designed to harvest anything and everything. These massive industrial operations dredge the waters with huge nets taking whatever they can pull up. They wipe out life on a large scale, not being conscious of their technique and removing hundreds, even thousands, of aquatic lifeforms. This effectively disrupts the oceans’ food chain by wiping out food sources for many creatures to thrive, survive, and reproduce to repopulate the waters. Additionally, the massive nets dragged on the ocean’s bottom destroy ecosystems aquatic animals need to sustain their populations.
Second, the monopoly created by industrial fishing boats leaves little behind for smaller, local, independent operations. These micro level fishers generally have a specific type of animal their boats are equipped for collecting: lobster, shrimp, large or small fish, etc. They create a balance so that no single fisher takes all of one catch. Enter the massive ships who take everything, and little to nothing is left for everyone else, including a way to provide for their families. National Geographic studied the competition using satellite images and found industrial fishing occupies a third of the planet. For the smaller boats, it is like using one fishing pole to compete with a thousand.
Sign the petition to urge Mr. Rauch of the NOAA Fisheries to place a stricter limit on the quantity and type of animals industrial fishers can take from the water.
PETITION LETTER:
Dear Deputy Assistant Rauch,
Our oceans’ aquatic life are in trouble. Huge industrial fishers have dominated the world’s oceans, a third or more according to National Geographic. These large scale operations care only about quantity and have no concern for the way their work disrupts and wipes out fragile aquatic ecosystems. There is no reason fish should be a dying resource. The seas are still capable of producing plenty for the world’s booming population, but that relies on our respect and boundaries when fishing. If we remove these animals’ food and even homes by dragging massive nets through the water, it is only a matter of time before there is nothing left.
To make matters worse, they are reducing the world’s fish supply not only for consumers but also smaller, local, fishers who rely on the sea’s bounty to feed their families and make a living. Smaller fishers target specific types of fish based on how their boats are equipped. This maintains a balance in what is extracted from the oceans and curbs too much from being harvested. When large fishers come through, it blocks channels for small boats, extracts everything from the water, and ultimately leaves a wasteland of resources for anyone else.
Action is necessary now to protect wildlife populations in our oceans’ and not lead fish and independent fishers to extinction. We urge you to create stronger regulations for the quantity and scope of industrial fishers.
Sincerely,
[Your Name Here]
Photo credit: Lamiot
