EDFish

Selected tag(s): Fisheries

Fish: the missing ingredient in addressing global malnutrition

By / Bio / Published: August 5, 2021

One of the things I focus on in my role as a climate scientist is understanding the impact of climate change on ocean fish populations as well as better fishery management practices to help ensure the continued delivery of seafood and livelihoods for millions of people around the world. Critically, the world is confronted with the challenge of increasing access to healthy food for a population that is expected to reach 10 billion by 2050. This summer, as people around the world take to the beaches and coastlines for some relaxation and enjoyment, it’s valuable to remember the major role oceans have in supporting human sustenance. Read More »

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Deepening scientific understanding and international collaboration to enhance climate resilience

By / Bio / Published: July 28, 2021

With a record drought depleting rivers and reservoirs, wildfires burning across the Western U.S., historic floods in Germany and China, landslides in Japan, and my own notoriously wet and dreary hometown of Portland, Oregon hitting 115 degrees recently, it’s hard to avoid thinking about climate change. But while the terrestrial impacts are wide-ranging and obvious, impacts to our oceans — no less disruptive — are generally less visible. Yet, healthy oceans are critical for sustainable fisheries and other vital ecosystem services. Fisheries provide jobs for hundreds of millions of people globally, and billions rely on seafood as an important source of protein and micronutrients.

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Celebrating Fishermen’s Day in Peru: a tribute to traditional sailing on the high seas

By / Published: June 29, 2021

By Nina Pardo and Hector Soldi

On June 4, a small but mighty fleet of artisanal sailboats from the fishing communities of Cabo Blanco and El Ñuro in northern Peru unfolded their sails and went out to sea — sailing alongside the Peruvian Navy’s sailing vessel La Unión. This annual regatta is a salute to the artisanal fishing fleet of Peru, which uses only the wind in their sails and their ancient traditions of navigation to fish a variety of important species for local seafood markets and restaurants. Read More »

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Fishing for Resilience: a video series to introduce you to climate-resilient fisheries

By / Bio / Published: June 22, 2021

Today, we’re introducing readers to the concept of climate resilience in marine fisheries through a new, three-part video series called “Fishing for Resilience.” As Environmental Defense Fund’s Senior Director for Resilient Fisheries, I played a central role in the creation of this short series — even “starring” in the videos as narrator.

Producing and narrating these videos was a bit of a personal journey for me, and not just because I had to listen to my own voice. It’s because I tried to bring this concept home, and found myself asking what climate change means to friends and family that ply the seas, what it means for my community, and what it means for the wildlife and ecosystems that I hold dear. That got me right into thinking about how to help the people, wildlife and broader ocean ecosystems that I care about in practical ways.

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Examining Climate Change Vulnerabilities of Marine Species in New England

By / Published: March 8, 2016
Sea scallop. Photo credit: Dann Blackwood, USGS

Sea scallop. Photo credit: Dann Blackwood, USGS

By: Kristin M. Kleisner

Last week at the Maine Fishermen’s Forum, a session entitled “Questioning our Changing Oceans,” sponsored by The Maine Coast Fishermen’s Association, The Environmental Defense Fund, The Island Institute, and The Nature Conservancy, sought to address some of the major issues related to climate change that the fishing industry has been experiencing. The panel included Jake Kritzer (EDF) as well as local scientists Andy Pershing (GMRI) and Jon Hare (NOAA), along with headliners Capt. Keith Coburn of the hit show ‘Deadliest Catch’, Capt. Buddy Guindon of the new breakout hit ‘Big Fish, Texas,’ and fishermen from as far as Western Australia.

The panel highlighted two NOAA studies recently published in PLOS ONE that highlight the vulnerability of marine fish and invertebrate species such as American lobster and scallops on the U.S. Northeast Shelf to the effects of climate change. Both studies illuminate important trends in species adaptation that will help inform future management decisions in the region. Read More »

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New study concludes that catch shares are working for fishermen in the U.S.

By / Bio / Published: June 4, 2015

iStock_000014104307MediumThe good news keeps rolling in about the performance of fisheries managed with secure fishing rights – called “catch shares” in the United States.

An important, detailed analysis of all 20 US catch-share fisheries, authored by scientists and economists of NOAA’s Office of Science and Technology and six regional fisheries science centers, was just issued in the journal, Marine Policy.

The bottom line is that the 13 well-studied catch shares show strong performance, with important increases in an index that adds together a wide array of economic productivity elements and that takes into account changes in relative fish abundance.  Even in just the first three years, that index gains an average of 22% versus baseline years (see Table 7).  For the six longest-established catch shares, the index is an average of 77% higher after the third year, with no increase lower than 14% (see Table 8). Read More »

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