Fish stocks in crisis

Why can’t we exploit fish sustainably?

Despite the idea, which emerged in the 1950s, that fish stocks can be sustainably managed, humans have damaged and destroyed fish populations around the world. This article looks at the reasons behind our failure to control exploitation of fish, and suggests that we need to reconsider the ways we approach our relationship to the marine environment. It is relevant to topics on ecosystems, biodiversity, food supply and resource use

Daniel Banoub

Fishermen in Newfoundland, Canada, emptying a cod trap

Fish live in maddeningly complex ecosystems. Their populations fluctuate, with enormous surges and rapid declines. They have highly variable diets, stitched together in complex predator–prey food webs, which shift as they grow older.

Over the past 150 years, humans have tried to adapt fishing methods to cope with this complexity. A variety of scientific and managerial approaches have been developed. In the 1950s the concept of ‘maximum sustained yield’ was introduced to promote the rational use of fish resources. Although the concept has been criticised for at least 40 years, it still dominates fisheries science and management. This article looks at how it emerged and why it still has not led to sustainable resource use.