As seen here: Ban Export Aquarium Fishes | The Manila Bulletin Newspaper Online Merry-Go-Round Ban Export Aquarium Fishes MANILA, Philippines — We pointed out that overfishing and the decimation of corals are the leading causes of fish stock depletion. The other is the use of dynamite, often referred to as “blast fishing.” Gunpowder is readily available from mining operators, extracted from bombs, and sometimes sourced from pyrotechnics manufacturers. Bottles filled with gunpowder are detonated underwater, which kills or stuns the majority of fish within the blast radius. The dead or stunned fish float to the surface are easily caught. Unfortunately, the illegal practice of blast fishing is commonly used in over 30 countries and has caused major damage and loss of Coral Reef Ecosystems, including over 50 percent of reefs in Southeast Asia, according to studies. “Blast Fishing is particularly damaging because it shatters the reef structure, therefore, on top of all the fish and coral lost due the initial blast, the damaged ecosystem is reduced to rubble,” the study says. It takes an estimated 100 to 106 years for a coral reef system to rebuild itself from the effects of destructive blast fishing. The unabated growth of fishing boats has also contributed to the depletion of fish stocks. This has been going on for some years now. Those of you who had been to the province lately would hear a common joke among small-time fishermen. “There seems to be more fishermen than fish.” Judging by the meager catch, or no catch at all, when they come home from a night of fishing is the basis for this observation. Let’s get to the facts. The Word Fishing Aquaculture said an estimated 470,000 fishing vessels below three gross tons are thought to operate in the Philippines inshore waters. Of these about 292,000 or 62% are non-motorized while 178,000 or 38% are motorized. The nation’s commercial fishing fleet numbers about 6,370 vessels of three tons and more, belonging to 2,360 fishing operators. About 1.6 million Filipinos are engaged in fishing and related activities, accounting for about 5% of the labor force. About 68% of those employed are in the coastal fisheries sector. In total about one million families living in coastal regions are dependent on coastal and marine resources for sustenance. About 76% are estimated to be low-income households. The Philippines is one of the world’s largest archipelagos stretching 2,000 km from north to south and consisting of 7,107 islands with an estimated 36,000 km of coastline. The total territorial water area covers 2.2 million square kilometers of which 266,000 square kilometers are coastal waters and 1.9 million square kilometers are oceanic. With 430 species of corals, 2,300 species of fish, 16 species of sea grass, hundreds of seaweed species, and thousands of marine invertebrate species, the Philippines has one of the richest marine and coastal ecosystems in the world. An FAO country profile of fisheries in the Philippines shows the country ranked 11th among the top fish producing countries in the world in 2003, with production of 2.63 million tons of fish, crustaceans, mollusks and aquatic plants (including seaweed). FAO said, however, all of the country’s main fish species and marine organisms are showing signs of overfishing. O-| “There is evidence of overcapacity in the commercial fishing fleet,” FAO warns. O-| Analyses of CPUE in six coastal provinces in the Philippines for the common hook-and-line type of fishing reveal alarming results: fish catch is in some cases less than 5% of the levels of only a few decades ago. O-| CPUE, catch per unit effort, is an indirect measure of the abundance of target species. A decreasing CPUE indicates overexploitation. _______________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Interesting facts, but if the government and the fishermen have no clue what can one expect? Wait for the fishery to completely collapse along with the fishing industry? O-| This is just one of the many reasons why I support aquaculture! :D Aquaculture Experts
