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Six months ago, I wrote about the historic reforms to New England’s important groundfish fisheries, which target bottom-dwelling species such as cod and flounder that have fed New Englanders for centuries. The New England Fishery Management Council adopted these changes last year to reverse the devastating impact of decades of overfishing. New England groundfish fishermen have operated…
Where is Pendik, you might wonder? That is exactly what I asked myself when I touched down in Turkey last week. Pendik is a bustling coastal town about an hour south from Istanbul, and it was the location of the 22nd meeting of the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas (ICCAT). My colleagues from the Pew…
What’s in a name? If you’re talking about ICCAT—the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas—so much is contained in that one acronym. This body manages all the tuna and tuna-like species found in the vast ocean waters between the United States and Europe and between South America and Africa. It’s not just a faceless…
Read the full “Overfishing 101″ series here. Anglers like me are often impressed with size. We seek out the largest fish, revel in stories about the “big one” that got away, and proudly display photos of our most impressive catches. But it’s a small, unassuming fish, the Atlantic menhaden, which forms the backbone of ecosystems and…
Read the full “Overfishing 101″ series here. How heavy is 35,000 metric tons? For starters, it’s the weight of 193 jumbo jets or 2,917 African elephants. It’s also the amount of Atlantic bluefin tuna that have exceeded the official catch quota in the Mediterranean Sea in the past two years alone, according to a Pew-commissioned analysis…
Read the full “Overfishing 101″ series here. Driftnets sound relatively harmless as a fishing method. But as any marine biologist will tell you, this gear threatens ocean wildlife. At its November meeting, however, the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas (ICCAT) could take steps to enforce current international prohibitions on the usage of this damaging…
Read the full “Overfishing 101″ series here. Atlantic bluefin tuna are one of the most popular fish in the world. Anglers fight for them, and love to tell tales of their epic battles. Scientists are enthralled by them, making this species one of the most studied in the ocean. And sushi lovers crave bluefin for…
Read the full “Overfishing 101″ series here. Many people have heard of bluefin tuna, even if they haven’t eaten it. Bluefin, which are among the world’s most remarkable animals, can reach 1,500 pounds, migrate across the Atlantic, dive to depths of more than 3,000 feet and swim at breakneck speeds. They have also been pursued for…
Read the full “Overfishing 101″ series here. Everyone loves a good comeback story, but sometimes a storyline emerges prematurely. Mark Twain famously responded to a press inquiry regarding his supposed demise by saying, “The report of my death was an exaggeration.” Similarly, declarations earlier this year that overfishing had ended in America provide a case…
Read the full “Overfishing 101″ series here. Since 1784, a five-foot wooden carving of a cod has hung from the ceiling of the Massachusetts State House—a symbolic reminder of the important place this fish holds in the hearts of New Englanders. Cod, along with other groundfish such as haddock and flounder, has supported coastal towns and economies…
Read the full “Overfishing 101″ series here. All too often, leaders in Washington focus on the short-term impacts of potential policies to the detriment of long-term benefits to our environment and economy. Ongoing efforts in Congress to weaken the federal laws that govern marine resources are a great case in point. Take Action: Ask your…
Read the full “Overfishing 101″ series here. Almost everyone has a friend or a relative who loves to tell the tale of the “big one” that got away. And more often than not, that fish grows larger and larger with every telling of the story. I have to admit, as an avid angler, I may…
NOTE: This is a guest post from Lee Crockett, Director of Federal Fisheries Policy at the Pew Environment Group This post is the seventh in a series, “Overfishing 101.” The entire series can be viewed here. I touched on fisheries science in my last post, but here I would like to take a more detailed look at the use…
NOTE: This is a guest post from Lee Crockett, Director of Federal Fisheries Policy at the Pew Environment Group This post is the sixth in a series, “Overfishing 101.” The entire series can be viewed here. As a lifelong angler, I’m the first to admit that fishing can inspire passionate arguments about where, when and how to fish.…
NOTE: This is a guest post from Lee Crockett, Director of Federal Fisheries Policy at the Pew Environment Group This post is the fifth in a series, “Overfishing 101.” The entire series can be viewed here. America’s ocean fish are an incredibly valuable resource. According to the most recent economic data from the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS),…
Note: This is the fourth post in a series, “Overfishing 101.” Read the previous posts here. Overfishing—taking fish from our oceans faster than they can reproduce—has plagued fisheries for decades. South Atlantic red snapper, for example, have been subject to overfishing since the 1960s. Congress first attempted to deal with this problem in 1976 when it passed…
Note: This is the third post in a series, “Overfishing 101.” Read the previous posts here. My interest in the ocean began when I joined the Coast Guard at age 18. This was the start of a passion that led me to study marine science, work at the National Marine Fisheries Service and help promote…
In the second post of a special series to mark the 35th anniversary of the U.S. Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act, a law that is helping to rebuild America’s depleted ocean fish populations and ensure their long-term sustainability, Lee Crockett looks at some of the basics of why all Americans should care about how our fish are managed.
The first in a series of posts authored by Lee Crockett—head of Pew Environment Group Federal Fisheries Policy and a life-long angler—exploring the importance of sustainable fisheries management to the U.S.
