Background information
Many people around the world depend heavily on fish for food. This has led to ever-growing demand for fish and overfishing practices. In response, poor fisheries management has destroyed marine life (Carrier et al., 29). This is because the management put little measures and even leaves the sector unchecked leading to severe overfishing trends. Overfishing is the extent to which marine species are caught in a higher rate compared to their reproduction rate. Overfishing has become a major problem. It has raised various concerns about the future of marine life. Under the current trends of fishing, the world will be at risk of losing marine life in the near future. Some specific marine species such as sharks and rays will be lost in the near future if appropriate measures are not put in place in time.
Recent statistics have shown that the 1041 species of existing sharks and rays face the risk of extinction. This is because fishermen and women view these particular species as profitable (Swartz et al., 36). Gathering much of them is a profitable exercise. What people fail to understand is the fear of collapse and other consequences of overfishing. Therefore, is the need to impose balance fishing controls justified? Should fishing of sharks and rays be put on a halt? Should fishing of the shark and ray species be illegalized? These concerns, among other questions should be critically scrutinized for the well-being of the global society.
Scientific research/studies
As mentioned earlier, scientific studies has been conducted on fishing. A good example is the research by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN). (IUCN) has categorized sharks and rays under the red list. This means that the species are highly threatened and likely to be eliminated through overfishing. The current rate stands and estimated 27% of the species caught annually. This is far much beyond the limit of the sustained fishing practices regarded as safe by the union. The union’s statistics on rays is shocking. The extinction rate of rays is much higher than for sharks. IUCN has suggested that fining exercise as the reason behind the declining of rays even though fining is considered as a scientific management technique.
Research done by Shark Advocates International, a Washington based organization projects the same scenario. The accelerated overfishing on rays is more than sharks. Going by this sequence, rays will be completely lost by 2017. The organization proposes for an immediate action to save marine life. Specifically, shark and ray fishing polices have to be enacted and implemented as soon as possible (Carrier et al., 29). As described by Shark Advocates International, the policies include: imposing some periods for fishing boycott on sharks and rays, removal of subsidies that are paid to deep sea fisheries and defining areas of fishing to exclude others as non fishing zones. However, the implementation of these control measures will only be successful when all stakeholders are determined to work towards a common goal. This is because lack of cooperation has been a challenge to stopping this ill fated practice.
Policy implications
It is evident that the entire world will benefit from the control measures and policies. The policies will imply that the population of sharks, rays and other marine species will rise. Biological balance of their reproduction will be attained. This means that people will be guaranteed of seafood not only for the near future but also for the long run (Swartz et al., 36).
Works Cited
Carrier, Jeffrey C, John A. Musick, and Michael R. Heithaus. Biology of Sharks and Their Relatives. Boca Raton, Fla: CRC Press, 2004. Print.
Swartz, Stanley L, and Robert Yin. Marine Life Primary Library Pack. Carlsbad, CA: Dominie Press, 2000. Print.
