source: travelsource.com
It may not seem that, as a consumer, you can do much to change the way we fish. The fishermen will decide what they want to catch and how they want to catch it. But that is the opposite of true. In reality, the entire market for fish could be revolutionized by consumers if we put the effort in. In an article on the Overfishing website (yes, the issue is so prominent it has its own website), the author writes about some possible solutions to the problem that link the power directly to the consumer.
It turns out that the most important thing we can do to help prevent such widespread damage to our oceans is let your new (or old!) knowledge of unsustainable fishing effect what fish you buy, from where, and how often.
1) Think back to my first blogpost about the most commonly purchased fish, and try to buy outside those four. It’s OK to still buy them; it’s just branching out that matters most. It shows fisheries that there is a market for other fish, so they are less likely to overfish one species.
2) Avoid certain fish that are most commonly caught in an unsustainable manner. (I carry around a list of the fish that are best avoidable in my wallet--they’re easily found online, so you can just print one out).
3) BY ALL MEANS, do not buy something we know to be on the endangered species list.
4) Spread the word! The only way we can make a difference is if we all work together.
The article also listed some important regulations that need to be implemented by our politicians and leaders such as Safe Catch Limits, Bycatch Limits, and the complete protection of fragile ecosystems while they recover from previous damage. Of course, the end goal is “to make sure management systems based on these rules are implemented everywhere”, but to get there average people need to show government leaders just how important this issue is.
