East Coast MARE hosted an Ocean Lecture & Educators' Night for teachers focused on bringing ocean literacy to students in New Jersey. Dr. Olaf Jensen of Rutgers University presented the scientific lecture on January 19, 2012. For more information visit http://coseenow.net/mare/opportunities-resources/ocean-lecture-educators-night/.
4. What I mean by a “fishery”
• A social-ecological system organized around the harvest of wild
marine/aquatic fish or invertebrates for use by humans.
Top 10 world fisheries (weight of landings)
Management Fishermen Fish “stocks”
5. What I mean by a “fishery”
• A social-ecological system organized around the harvest of wild
marine/aquatic fish or invertebrates for use by humans.
Top 10 world fisheries (weight of landings)
FAO 2006
Management Fishermen Fish “stocks”
7. World fishery landings peaked in the 1980s
FAO 2006
…it seems unlikely that the potential sustained yield of fish to man is
appreciably greater than 100 million tons.
- Ryther 1969, Science
9. Fishing effort and demand for
seafood continue to grow
• 4 million fishing vessels
• landings worth 84.9 billion USD
• 2.6 billion people rely on fish for >20% of their animal
protein (1/3 of global population)
10. Fishing effort and demand for
seafood continue to grow
• 4 million fishing vessels
• landings worth 84.9 billion USD
• 2.6 billion people rely on fish for >20% of their animal
protein (1/3 of global population)
FAO 2006
26. Stock status
worldwide
• 166 stocks
• 63% below
MSY target
• 65% fished at
rates below
UMSY
Worm et al. 2009 Science
27.
28. Stock status – selected regions
updated – 241
assessments
New Zealand Canada
EuropeUnited States
Ricard et al. 2012
29.
30.
31.
32. Declining fishing rate and signs of
rebuilding
• 7 of 10 regions at or below
fishing rate that yields MSY
• Higher fishing rates in Europe
• Biomass still low in most regions
• Signs of rebuilding in:
– California
– Northeast U.S.?
– Iceland
33. A New Consensus
• Overfishing has depleted a significant
number of stocks and ecosystems
• Solution: reduce fishing pressure to
achieve better economic and ecological
outcomes
• New focus on restoring biodiversity,
rebuilding fisheries
• High seas and less developed countries
remain great challenges
38. New Jersey Fisheries
• Commercial landings in NJ worth about
$150 million per year
• Cape May – Wildwood is the 8th
most
important fishing port in the U.S. (by
value)
• Recreational anglers: 1.2 million in NJ
• Recreational fishing impact: $1.6 billion
annually
48. Acknowledgments
• NCEAS working group participants
• Dan Ricard, Coilin Minto, Julia Baum, Malin
Pinsky (database development and analysis)
• Boris Worm, Liz Neeley, Trevor Branch
(presentation slides)
• Rainer Froese (FishBase)
• Reg Watson (Sea Around Us Project)
• Database contributors
• NCEAS and David H. Smith Conservation
Research Fellowship
