Posted by MikeT on June 15, 2005 at 20:18:42:
In Reply to: Regulators to tighten regulations on Pacific bottom trawling posted by on June 14, 2005 at 23:56:15:
"Fisheries management has been conducted for decades without paying attention to the habitat that produces the fish," said Rod Fujita, a marine ecologist with Environmental Defense. "It's always about protecting the fish populations themselves, but not their homes."
- I always thought this was the case while I was growing up in Maine. Reports were always "fish populations are OK" based on catch. Never including discussion of trashed ocean habitats, which I remember as a kid, was a separate issue in the local news.
Bottom trawling seems horrible to me. It's strip mining everything at the bottom of the ecosystem, there must be tons of bycatch, not to mention the physical desctution. Drift nets at least leave that (but still kill far too much).
- I hope something good gets passed, it makes sense as it could increase populations. The fishing industry needs think about the future.
- MikeT