Other

Re: Save the fish!

Ollie — Fri, 07 Sep 2007 04:19:41 GMT

breaking news, george w busgh has declared human beings and fish can co-exist peacfully!!

watch http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xq956JmU1LE&eurl=http%3A%2F%2Fwww%2Einnocentenglish%2Ecom%2Ffunny%2Dbloopers%2Dmistakes%2Dquotes%2Ffunniest%2Dbushisms%2Ehtml

(sorry about the long link)

Ollie

Re: Save the fish!

Ollie — Thu, 06 Sep 2007 03:42:00 GMT

So long and thanks for all the fish
So sad that it should come to this
We tried to warn you all but oh dear

You may not share our intellect
Which might explain your disrespect
For all the natural wonders that grow (around you)
So long so long and thanks for all the fish

The world’s about to be destroyed
There’s no point getting all annoyed
Lie back and let the world dissolve (around you)

Despite those nets of tuna fleetes
We thought most of you were sweet
Especially tiny tots and your pregnant women

So long so long, so long so long, so long so long, so long so long
So long so long, so long so long, so long so long, so long so long
So long so long and thanks for all the fish

If I had just one last wish
I would like a tasy fish
If we could just change one thing
We would all have learnt to sing

Come one and all
Man and mammal
Side by side in life's great gene pool

So long so long, so long so long, so long so long, so long so long
So long so long, so long so long, so long so long, so long so long
So long so long and thanks for all the fish

Re: Save the fish!

Anonymous — Thu, 06 Sep 2007 02:12:59 GMT

Hey,

Yes, thanks, Annabel, for “raising your voice” here. Overfishing is not a brand new topic, since the cod fishery off Newfoundland, for example, collapsed in 1992. Nevertheless it’s true: The public awareness cannot be great enough!

Writing letters is good in a way due to being encouraged to gather lots of information in order to argue on a scientific as well as ethical basis. And you feel better, too. And, IF you are a prominent person, there might be even someone who’s gonna read that stuff you wrote…

Additionally (to being informed), I suggest a more practical approach:

Like all industries, the seafood industry is largely market driven. You as a consumer –if not already vegetarian, of cause– can make a difference by choosing fish-species that are not endangered (yet), as well as caught by well-managed and controlled fisheries sticking to guidelines of sustainability and the minimization of bycatch. (Just came back from a marine sciences conference in Hamilton and saw some horrible movies of Albatrosses getting pulled under water by fishing gear used in longline fishing in the southern Ocean.)

Organizations such as the Blue Ocean Institute and the Monterey Bay Aquarium

(link below) publish seafood guides to help people make informed choices when buying seafood.

http://www.seafoodwatch.org/cr/seafoodwatch.asp

(Certainly you also know these ridiculous “Pure Tuna, no Dolphin”-labels. Don’t know if we should trust these. - It could also mean: “May contain traces of Dolphin.” Just for those, who are allergic to Dolphin. The “clean green”- image sells better these days; keep that in mind, as well.)

Other helpful links if you want to learn more:

http://oceans.greenpeace.org/en/our-oceans/overfishing

http://marinebio.org/Oceans/Conservation/SustainableFisheries.asp

http://www.greens.org.nz/searchdocs/speech5817.html

And now, this is REALLY cool: Online-Chat with WTO chef Pascal Lamy!!! Grab him, shake him (verbally) @

http://www.wto.org/english/forums_e/chat_e/dg_chat2_e.htm

Nicolai

Re: Save the fish!

Annabel — Wed, 05 Sep 2007 18:04:47 GMT

Point taken- is pretty idealistic assuming something like this would actually have any effect but if a whole lot of people took one small step in saying they cared about fisheries management and wanted to stop some of the outrageous management practices going on now, that makes it a whole lot harder to ignore.

The whole thing is indeed a lot more complicated than just "saving the fish" but I completely agree that it's better to try something than nothing at all!!

Re: Save the fish!

Emilio — Wed, 05 Sep 2007 06:15:24 GMT

Hey!

I'd love that it works, though I don't think that's very useful. Why? Well, as far as I know, it is being widely demonstrated that subsidising fishing fleets (regardless of what these subsidies aim) it's been a complete failure. Thus, in the EU (as you talk about Euros) there's currently a new Fishing Policy which clearly discourages any kind of subsidies, however, this is not equally implemented among all the European countries. But the most important thing is that all the 'fishing nations' have billateral agreements with most, if not all, the developing countries. This is something that I believe the WTO is very unlikely change... Another big problem in fisheries management is what is known as IUU fishing (Illegal Unreported and Unregulated fishing) in which unfortunately, Spain is one of the leading countries.

I don't think that the WTO is going to very helpful in improving the state of world fisheries (I actually doubt that it's even really interested in doing so). Finally, given that New Zealand is a leading country in bottom trawling -which not only depletes the fishing stocks but also completely destroys all the marine ecosystems where it takes place- do you really believe that whoever is the trade minister cares about sustainable fisheries? It would be really good if just by writing a letter we can "save the fish" but things are more difficult than that.However, it's good that you guys care about 'the fish' and the oceans in general, and it's better to try something than nothing at all!!

Re: Save the fish!

Terra Dumont — Wed, 05 Sep 2007 04:45:15 GMT

Good on you for bringing that up! I just got the email too. The world fishing practices drive me crazy (ie why I am becoming a marine biologist!) I shall be onto writting them a letter tomorow!

Save the fish!!!!

Terra

Save the fish!

Annabel — Tue, 04 Sep 2007 05:24:53 GMT

Hey guys

Sorry I know this is not really that tramping-related, but for all those of you who have endured my rants about fisheries management up in the hills, thought this was worth passing on...

"The world's oceans are being emptied, and fishers in developing countries can't find fish--all because of subsidies in rich countries that drive overfishing. This month, the WTO is writing new global fishing rules. Will you send a message to your trade minister to support fair and sustainable fishing?

Often, the issues that affect the most lives don't make the headlines. This month, we have an opportunity to do something big about one of them: the global fishing crisis.

Fishers in developing countries are catching fewer and fewer fish--because of massive overfishing by industrialized fishing fleets from rich countries, fleets subsidized with tens of billions of Euros every year. As a result, fish populations are now collapsing around the globe, and could soon be pushed beyond recovery.

But our oceans don't have to die. This September, the World Trade Organization will release a new proposal for global fishing rules--and right now, trade ministers are deciding what those rules should be. If enough of us urge our trade ministers to support a better system, we preserve our oceans for future generations--and for the one billion humans who rely on fish for protein today. Click here to send your trade minister a message in support fairness and sustainability:
http://www.avaaz.org/en/make_fishing_fair/c.php/?cl=16150568

A recent study found that 90% of the ocean's big fish--tuna, swordfish, and marlin--are already gone. But it's not the countries with the greatest need that are catching too many of these fish--it's the subsidized fishing fleets from the rich countries. These fleets don't just trawl the open ocean--they fish off the coasts of developing countries, robbing local fishers and their communities of desperately needed food supplies. And as technology has developed, the crisis has accelerated.

Last week, Dr. Francis K. E. Nunoo, a Ghanaian scientist who studies fisheries ecology, interviewed a local fisherman for this campaign. the fisherman told him: "Ten years ago, during the peak fishing season of the year, my boat is filled with a single throw of the net. In recent times, we throw the gear about 7 times before filling the same boat. And the situation is even worse this year."

A group of 125 scientists wrote a letter to the director-general of the WTO, urging him to take action on fishing subsidies. Their argument:
"There are only decades left before the damage we have inflicted on the oceans becomes permanent. We are at a crossroads. One road leads to a world with tremendously diminished marine life. The other leads to one with oceans again teeming with abundance, where the world can rely on the oceans for protein, and enjoy its wildlife. The choices we make today will determine our path for the future."

The World Trade Organization is governed by its 151 member countries. The next few weeks, as the WTO works on its new plan, are critical. The plan is to send messages--thousands of them--to our countries' trade ministers, urging a strong decision by the WTO to change the rules that underly the unfair and unsustainable fishing trade.

Experts say that 29% of commercial fisheries might already be beyond repair. But most of the world's marine ecosystems can recover, if we get our policies right. The very fact that so few people are paying attention to this issue means that our actions will have more power. The fishing crisis is an example of where our global economic system doesn't work--not for people, and not for the earth. But by joining together to fix it, we can create an example of how global democracy should work: human beings, rich and poor, taking action to renew a world full of life.

Raise your voice and spread the word."