I was at a new fish shop, that’s fish and chips not decorative fish for an aquarium, the other day and I said to my partner Rob...”What if we ever run out of fish?”

 
It got me thinking for years the oceans have just been a dumping ground. It’s not just the tons and tons of plastic that’s floating around in the vast oceans of the world, that continues to be dumped, but all the living creatures that eat the plastic thinking it’s food. Fish feed on the micro plastic pieces as it breaks down into smaller pieces then we eat the fish! Turtles and whales eat plastic bags because they look like squid or jellyfish. Then there’s the over fishing!
 
There was a programme on TV last night on Netflix called SEASPIRACY I advise anyone with a ounce of interest,  or a thought for the future for their children or grand children, to watch it.
 
One fact emerged that hit me was in the north sea where they fish for halibut...a popular fish to eat in northern climes. In the 1800’s a typical fishing boat could catch 1-2 tons per day...now a whole fleet of trawlers would catch two tons per year! Does that make any sense to anyone who thinks that fish will always be there for us to plunder at will?
 
Long line fishing where baited hooks are trailed behind ships for kilometres, many kilometres, catching anything...even birds...and discarding what’s no good not required. 

Shark populations being decimated by Asian fishermen just for their fins for shark fin soup! They cut the fins off live sharks and just dump them back in the ocean to die.
 
The “by catch” from trawlers of fish that’s either too small or the wrong species and just left for dead.
 
Then there’s the tons and tons of plastic netting that fisherman discard, dumped, in the oceans of the world to just float around trapping any number of unsuspecting species. It really makes changing from plastic straws to paper straws to be so miniscule. In fact, as the programme stated, 0.03% of plastic straws are the problem. Discarded plastic nets are a huge THE most important environmental problem!
 
Is so called sustainable fishing...sustainable? It's questionable where this programme was concerned.  No experts called on for an interview seemed to give a satisfactory answer.
 
I always buy dolphin free tuna..but this again seems questionable. I find it all very confusing.
 
We saw Dolphins being slaughtered in huge numbers in Taiji, Japan, as some form of “pest control” it seems they called it. If we kill them first attitude there’s more fish for us. It’s depressing I know and I really couldn't stomach watching it until the end. I guess that makes me weak but hey I’ve always sort of known what goes on; this programme only confirmed it! Just a feeling of helplessness. I lay there awake thinking about it afterwards!
 
I buy the farmed Salmon but now I’m really not even sure about that. We have farmed Barramundi here in Australia but often I have heard farmed Barramundi from Asian countries is sold in our restaurants because it is cheaper and the water quality where they are bred in vast numbers is doubtful to say the least.
 
The real kicker for me was the way we are going by around the year 2048 the oceans will be not just be over fished but decimated of fish. Even if that date is wrong, as some experts say it is, you can see the direction we're heading. 
 
Maybe next time we order the ever present, and I know delicious, fish and chips from our local shop we should just think.
 
I wish I knew the answer...but I don’t...
 
 

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