Mother Nature (WRATH)

[~ Susan ~]

So Long and Thanks for all the Fish
How can Canada help prevent a global ‘tragedy of the commons?'
By David Booth
Published: Wednesday November 15th, 2006

In 1892 my great-uncle was pulled overboard during an Atlantic fishing expedition, subsequently dying entangled in his own nets in the icy waters off the coast of Nova Scotia.

The refusal of the Canadian government to fulfill its obligations to protect its fisheries has led to a macabre reversal of fortunes – it is now our coveted fish stocks that are threatened with forthcoming demise, tangled in nets of governmental inaction and ecologically destructive fishing practices. Much like my ill-fated relative, our future will be inseparably linked with our ocean harvests.

Global fish stocks are currently on the precipice of disaster. Canada has historically been a global leader in marine ecosystem management and oversees one of the largest fisheries in the world. Yet the Harper administration’s characteristic inflexibility on environmental issues is threatening to undermine both Canada’s global leadership on marine protection, and its priceless Atlantic fisheries.

His administration refuses to recognize a growing scientific consensus on the issues of climate change and benthic trawling [also known as bottom trawling] – two key factors affecting the health of the world’s marine ecosystems.

A recent study published in the esteemed periodical Science has compiled striking evidence that twenty-nine percent of global fish stocks have already been depleted, and total collapse is predicted with startling accuracy for 2048 if current fishing practices are not dramatically curtailed.

Professor Boris Worm of Dalhousie University, analyzed all of the world’s 7,800 seafood species and demonstrated a link between exhaustion of stocks and the oceans’ ability to sustain life. As marine biodiversity declines, so does the water quality, according to Dr. Worm. Ultimately, that leads to a point of no return, when the water cannot sustain fish. If these predictions are correct, marine life will be reduced to poisonous algae by 2048 if fishing practices are not substantially altered.

Exacerbating the exhaustion of global fisheries is the rise in ocean temperatures, which has been determined to be a result of climate change.

If Canada is to play a role in the implementation of ecologically sound protective measures, it must recognize its unique position in the world’s marine community. The Grand Banks off the coast of Newfoundland are one of the world’s largest and richest fisheries, due to a unique mixture of a massive, relatively shallow continental shelf and turbulent water currents that push nutrients to surface. The Canadian fisheries have duly exploited the fact that this creates an ideal marine ecosystem for commercially important fish species.

Canada is no stranger to over-fishing. In the 1980’s the Atlantic cod fisheries boasted a 425,000-tonne annual haul – yet by July 2, 1992 a moratorium was desperately implemented to save the dwindling cod stocks. The harsh lessons learned from these events led to a new direction in fisheries management, one that focused on ecosystem health over economic gain. This policy was taken to aggressive extremes in 1994 when the Canadian authorities began boarding vessels found to be illegally fishing even outside of the 200-kilometer exclusive economic zone.

The leadership that Canada demonstrated during these tumultuous times helped prevent the collapse of its most vital fish stock. Yet globally, over-fishing, environmental degradation, and rising ocean temperatures have continued to provoke a sharp decline in the world’s fish populations.

This puts Canadian Fisheries minister Loyola Hearn in an unusual predicament; the overwhelming evidence of the effects of global climate change on marine ecosystems has led to an amazing level of cognitive dissonance for the Conservative Member of Parliament.

On one hand, his party refuses to recognize the anthropogenic causes of climate change. This is evidenced by the implementation of only the lightest of regulations on Canadian carbon emissions – a move that has outraged environmental groups and rival MPs. On the other, he is tasked with the protection of Canada’s fisheries, a task that must be inextricably linked with ecological responsibility and scientific understanding.

Stating that he is ‘no scientist’ during a recent press conference in the foyer of the House of Commons, the minister reluctantly admitted that, “The temperature in one of our stations, for instance, off St. John’s, has increased by four and a half degrees. That has a tremendous effect… something is happening.” Pushed for his thoughts on climate change, he disclosed that, “I think everybody is concerned that climate change certainly has to have some effect on this.”

Even this meager admission is in glaring contrast to his party’s position on climate change. The Conservatives have effectively reigned-in any speculation of the effects of climate change, exemplified by Environment minister Rona Ambrose’s recent refusal to allow an Environment Canada scientist from promoting his own science-fiction novel about global warming because it contradicts the Conservative party’s official stance.

Prime Minister Steven Harper’s cryptic response to the event speaks volumes about how the Conservatives have decided to handle the issue of climate change. “I not only hope, but expect, that all elements of the bureaucracy will be working with us to achieve our objectives,” he said. When those objectives include ignoring scientific consensus, one wonders at what exactly Harper thinks government scientists are paid to do.

Despite the intra-party disconnect, Hearn states that, “We’re trying to create an awareness – very much like the people who put out that study – [that] if we don’t handle what’s going on in the ocean, if we’re not concerned about the ecosystem, we’re going to do irreparable damage.”

His urgent words have precipitated little in the way of action or policy change. This lack of action does not only extend to climate change. Hearn is also coming under fire for his refusal to back a UN moratorium on benthic trawling.

According to Lisa Speer of the Deep Sea Conservation Coalition, benthic trawling involves scrapping huge, weighted nets along the ocean floor, which has a devastating effect on sensitive deep-sea ecosystems. The Coalition, consisting of 50 membership organizations around the world, had joined together with 1,100 scientists to call for a moratorium on deep sea benthic trawling so that a legal regulatory regime could be developed. “It is time to shift from words to action and to preserve the precious ocean resources that belong to all of humankind,” said Spear.

However, Mr. Hearn has stood by his decision not to support the UN moratorium. “It’s on the high seas, which means it’s completely unregulated and unenforceable, so it means practically nothing,” he said. That is “nonsense,” according to Boris Worm of Dalhousie University.

Professor Worm reminded Hearn that the UN banned the use of drift nets in 1992 and how that moratorium is now widely respected. On this issue Canada demonstrated key global leadership; the country hosted an international meeting in Sydney, Nova Scotia that would eventually lead to the ban.

Canada currently allows benthic trawling within its territorial waters, forcing Hearn to argue that because of this the Canadian government cannot support the international ban. If it did, it would also have to cease benthic-trawling operations domestically, which the minister claims would severely impact employment in Atlantic Canada. However, it is not essential that Canada stop its own trawling practices to help support the deep-sea ban.

What should be recognized as essential is the need to protect the coral ecosystems on which the groundfish of the Grand Banks are dependent. The groundfish populations in Atlantic Canada have been declining ever since the 1992 moratorium – cod by 82%; haddock by 32%; turbot by 35%; redfish and rockfish by 69%; and hake by 43%. Only halibut has seen an increase – up 32%. All fishing practices must be scaled down to retard this remarkable decline, and preventing the decimation of marine ecosystems is vital to increasing the population of the world’s aquatic life.

Despite the economic value of benthic trawling operations, the practice has major ecological consequences. Benthic trawling is leading to an unprecedented destruction of the ecosystem of the ocean floor. According to Matthew Gianni, advisor to the Global Marine Programme of the International Union for the Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (UICN), deep-sea benthic trawling may lead to losses of up to 95-98% of the coral cover of seamounts, destroying the ecosystem upon which this catch depends for survival. This coral cover, which has taken tens of thousands of years to build up to current levels, supports a diverse food chain, where commercial fish species only represent the tip of the ecological iceberg.

Most of these deep-water fish species are long-lived and slow growing, making strict regulation of their catch, both within territorial waters and on the high seas, essential for their survival. Gianni’s report states that, “Most of the deep-water species in the Northeast Atlantic have been completely unregulated; the latest stock assessments indicate that nearly all exploited deep-water species are being harvested ‘outside safe biological limits.’”

Due to the minute economic benefits on a global scale, and pervasive ecological damage caused by benthic trawling, the Canadian move to block the high-seas benthic trawling moratorium at the expense of its global leadership makes little sense.

In order to regain a position of authority on the issue of marine conservation, Canada must unequivocally support the high-seas moratorium, begin funding the science that is necessary for accurate decisions regarding the Atlantic fisheries, and begin to phase out its own benthic trawling operation.

In Canada, fisheries science has floundered since the 1992 moratorium. According to George Rose, a former federal fisheries scientist, “Canada is no longer a leader in fisheries and marine science. We’ve just dropped the ball.”

The long years of neglect in fisheries science have prevented researchers from accurately measuring the health of common fish stocks, Rose recently told Canadian senators. Without proper scientific funding, the data necessary for Fisheries minister Hearn to accurately assess the state of Canadian fisheries is in absentia. Clearly, increasing the research budget for scientists studying the Atlantic marine ecosystem will aid Canada in making the right decisions regarding their use of marine resources.

The time has passed for Canada to lead the way on the issue, but its cooperation may convince the countries that have refused to sign the ban – Spain, Iceland and Japan – to reconsider their position and join the U.S., Australia, the United Kingdom, New Zealand, Norway, and Brazil, in rallying for an interim moratorium on benthic trawling. It is unlikely that the recalcitrant countries, particularly Spain and Iceland, will relent their position if the Grand Banks remains open to this devastating practice.

By capitulating on the issue of climate change, minister Hearn has not ushered in a sea change in terms of Canadian environmental policy. But this movement to recognize the science behind the issues does point towards the right direction to put Canada back into a leadership role in marine conservation by listening to the international scientific community in their plea to prohibit benthic trawling.
http://gnn.tv/articles/2734/So_Long_and_Thanks_for_all_the_Fish