Since nowadays a large number of marine
species are endangered, both effort from the government and effort from general
public are required to sustain the reproduction of these species. Along with
government’s regulation on fishing these species, we should make wise decision
on what kind of seafood we are supposed to eat. The general rules for choosing
ocean-friendly seafood are the following:
1) We
should choose those abundant species with a short maturation period. For
example, saury and Antarctic krill are cheap, fresh, and delicious. They are
both ocean-friendly species.
2) We
should choose filter-feeding or herbivorous marine species to eat. For example,
oyster and clams are good choices.
3) We
should choose those farmed species with good management. We can also check
whether a particular species is certified as sustainable and well managed to
the Marine Stewardship Council’s environmental standard at http://www.msc.org.
4) We
should also consult those species’ clear background and make it clear: what
kind of seafood is this, what is the place of origin, how it is fished, etc.
5) We
should not eat those fish with large size, or fish ore. Big fish are usually on
high nutrition level. Their population size is small and their biological
recovery rate is very slow. Eating those species such as sharks and blue-fin
tuna will influence ocean’s ecological balance. Fish ore are technically
immature fish, human should let it grow to make reproduction of fish possible.
The Blue Ocean Institute (http://blueocean.org/)
contains a very useful seafood choice guideline, which enables consumers to
look up for information about many different kinds of seafood. The guideline
classifies all the seafood choices into the following categories:
1) Species
has a combination of problems such as overfishing, high bycatch, and poor
management.
2) Some
problems exist with this species' status or catch methods, or information is
insufficient for evaluating.
3) Species
is relatively abundant, and fishing methods cause little damage to habitat and
other wildlife.
4) A
fishery targeting this species has been certified as sustainable and well
managed to the Marine Stewardship Council's environmental standard. Learn more
at http://www.msc.org.
5) These
fish contain levels of mercury or PCBs that may pose a health risk to adults
and children.
It is always important for consumers to
carefully choose what seafood to eat in order to effectively protect endangered
marine species. With the information provided above, we will be able to choose
seafood in an ocean-friendly manner and help protecting endangered species more
effectively.
Works cited:
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