EU's disastrous fishing policy

[DMB]

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/europe/article6150547.ece

Europe’s fishing industry is on the brink of suicide and several species are in danger of extinction after 25 years of policy failure,the European Commission said yesterday...

...“Sustained political and economic pressure has led industry and member states to request countless derogations, exceptions and specific measures,” the Green Paper stated.

Many EU fishermen then receive subsidies to help them to stay in business — for instance, those involved in the anchovy grounds that have been closed to save the species. “European citizens almost pay for their fish twice: once at the shop and once again through their taxes,” said the Paper.

The trouble, as always with the EU, is a lack of collective will. Was it last week that the French fisherman were blocking the Channel ports to protest that the quotas were not high enough?

[sohy]

I saw a piece on the television about this recently. It's not just the EU, the US has been over fishing the Gulf of Mexico for years. There have been some recent efforts to curb this. Red snapper is one of the fish that is threatened and also one of the gulf's favorite. They are trying to come up with a solution that will allow the fishermen to make a living while not totally depleting the fish. I doubt that's enough, but at least they are trying to address the problem.

Apparently the emphasis on eating more fish for health reasons has turned out to be a big problem. There is simply not enough fish to feed the world. Aquaculture may be a way to solve part of the problem if it can be done with much less pollution than the current methods. Let's face it. There are too many people on the planet and no sign of that changing anytime soon.

[BWE]

Fishing policy is one of the weirdest political issues in the world. If the US and Canada ever go to war, it will be over fishing.

[alien billie]

Our staff canteen has stopped selling cod, herring, and coley. They are now reduced to pangasius, a grey, watery, bottom-feeding Vietnamese river fish.

Yum.