Viewpoint: Back to the future for fisheries, where will we choose to go?

Zeller, Dirk and Pauly, Daniel (2019) Viewpoint: Back to the future for fisheries, where will we choose to go? Global Sustainability, 2. ISSN 20594798

Abstract

We present a view on global marine fisheries that emphasizes mitigating the conflict between sustainability and the scale of industrial exploitation driven by the demand of continuous economic growth. We then summarize the current state of global fisheries. Finally, we advocate strongly for scaling back industrial fisheries, most of which are non-sustainable. This can be achieved through eliminating the harmful, capacity-enhancing subsidies that prop up industrial fisheries to continue operating despite declining fish stocks. Instead, we propose to support well-managed, locally owned and operated small-scale fisheries, which generally contribute more to local employment and food security. We stress that contrary to deep-seated opinion in the fishing industry and among politicians, reducing overfishing by eliminating overcapacity in fishing fleets will actually lead to greater, not reduced catches. This would address part of the increased global seafood demand over the coming decades, which is driven by population and wealth growth. This seems counterintuitive, but is supported by fisheries science, data and experiences. Thankfully, we are beginning to see that some of these changes are being pursued by a growing number of countries and international institutions.

Item Type:	Article
Identification Number:	10.1017/sus.2019.8
Uncontrolled Keywords:	fisheries,food security,industrial activities,natural resources (biological and non-biological),policies,politics and governance
Depositing User:	Unnamed user with username chikyta
Date Deposited:	11 Jun 2024 03:47
Last Modified:	11 Jun 2024 03:47
URI:	http://repository.ub.ac.id/id/eprint/220838

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