Overfishing

By, Muhammad Fahrezi

Introduction
You may not have realized it by now, but in a

also meet the same fate. In addition, this shows that

couple of decades, our supply of fish will be non-

the consumption of cod is restricted because of its

existent. This is because fishermen are overfishing

limited quantity and overfishing activists have to

popular fish species which can lead our fish to the

result to the creation of a cod moratorium to prohibit

brink of extinction. On top of all that, over the

the activity of hunting and eating cod. According to,

centuries, each fish species, such as the cod species

Ocean Alert: Overfishing (Living Ocean

has experienced a drastic decline in population.

Foundation, 2015), fishermen are fishing more than

Fortunately, scientists able to crack down on

that can be naturally produced. This reveals that

overfishing and have come to the conclusion that if

there will be far less fish in the sea because of

people work actively to save our fish, then we will

overfishing. Furthermore, this shows that fish are

be able to eat fish in the future.

being devastatingly overfished, because of the event

in which fish species are recorded to have

What is the problem/topic?

alarmingly decreased in the sea. Thus, this gives us a

better understanding of what the problem of

Fishermen that traverse the sea use fishing

overfishing really is.

devices that critically deplete fish species. For

example, this is true for the cod species. According
to, Will The Ocean Run Out of Fish? (DNews,
2015), the population of cod is at an all-time low,
reaching 1% population after 500 years. This means
that at this rate, the rest of the fish in the sea may

What is causing the issue?

The issue here is that fishermen overfishing

Overfishing

greatly impacts the environment

fish species, rather than overfishing in general. Just

around it because it disrupts biological systems. For

like the cod species from before, it specifically was

example, according to, The Effects of Overfishing

immensely overfished which pushed it into the

on Marine Biodiversity (Lee & Safina, 1995),

endangerment zone. According to, Troubled

Overfishing impacts biodiversity. This means that in

Waters (Judge, 2015) one of the main problems of

the event of lost genetic diversity, the fish will have

overfishing is the direct overfishing of one species,

a hard time adapting to the environment. In addition,

for example the Bluefin tuna. This fish is primarily

it was stated that the pink salmon has reduced in size

used in sushi, but has since been marked as

overtime due to overfishing, most likely due to the

overfished and endangered because its dire decrease

lack of breeding time that fishes have before being

in population. In addition, even though overfishing

caught. According to, Impact of Overfishing On

in general is bad, the direct overfishing of a certain

Human Lives (Jetson, 2014), overfishing can

fish population could pose a big problem, because

possibly destroy the environment and severely ruin

this can send the species to annihilation. According

the food chain. This reveals that the destruction of

to, Red Fish, Green Fish (Church, 2011),

one environment can severely impact food chains,

fishermen illegally fish for secluded fish species.

ultimately creating a domino effect in the food

This notifies us that that fish which have been put

chain. Furthermore, by-catch, the unwilling catching

into a moratorium or that were purposely restricted

of unnecessary marine animals can impact the

are still being caught. Furthermore, this creates a

environment because certain endangered or

problem for overfishing activists because the fish

protected marine animals may be at risk for death by

that they are trying to save are still being hunted.

disposal. To conclude, the sea needs environmental

Lastly, this gives extensive knowledge that major

laws to keep everything balanced and to help

fish species are considered overfished and one

stabilize our underwater economy.

should take note on all fish that are close to

extermination.

What are impacts with the

environment?

Cod Species, a very endangered species

Current Solutions?
Although overfishing has been a catastrophe
that has gone on for decades, there are still ways to
help stop overfishing and reverse its impact on the

What are impacts to personal

health?
Many people in the world rely on the ocean
for their main source of food. For example,
according to a source, (Appropriate Technology,
1995), millions of people rely on fish for their main
source of protein. This is significant because if
overfishing persists, millions of people will not have
their primary source of protein. In addition, the
millions of people also receive calcium from fish, so
they will not get receive calcium. According to the
previous source, (Appropriate Technology, 1995),
fish is a part of most people's diets. This reveals that
people rely on fish to live and without fish they

world. For example, according to, Sharks Under

Attack (Bennington, 2002), a federal law was
passed to protect shark species and to stop
overfishing with coastal sharks. This is important
because it protects coastal sharks from extinction. In
addition, it keeps one less fish species from
decimation. According to, Project Ocean - Can We
such as the cod species are. Furthermore, knowing
the fish that are not in the endangerment zone is
good too, because you can safely eat it without
environmental consequences. In the end, people are
working actively to end overfishing and saving the
fish for decades to come.

New Solutions?

would not be able to sustain themselves.

People actively work to change the future

Furthermore, overfishing impacts both humans and

marine lives. In the end, overfishing can not only

our lives, and although people came up with brilliant

decrease fish species, it can also decrease human

solutions to the overfishing predicament, scientists

population.

came up with more ways to help keep fish around

for

decades.

According

to,

Ocean

Alert:

Overfishing (Living Ocean Foundation, 2015) a

great way to prevent overfishing is to not catch fish
during breeding season. This is important because it
gives fish enough time to repopulate so we can have
enough fish to eat. In addition, this ensures that the
fish we wont be losing more fish than can be

reproduced. According to, Will The Ocean Run Out

Of Fish? (DNews, 2015), one great way to stun
overfishing is to create periods of time dedicated to
the halting of fishing. This is significant because it
gives fish time to reproduce. Furthermore, it gives
time for the fish to grow so when the period of time
is over we can have big fish to eat. To conclude,
scientists are coming up with new things every day
to help solve our overfishing crisis.

Final Thoughts
When looking at the prospect of fishing in
current times, we have to look at overfishing as the
an underlying problem. Overfishing is a malignant
growth, which must be wiped out before real
problems begin to arise. We have to limit the species
that are in danger of being wiped out, and we have
to put forth the solution to this problem, otherwise
the consequences will be grim. What we do now
today, will impact generations to come.

Bennington, S. (2002). Sharks Under Attack.

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