Wayne's Utne Reader Response

-- Anonymous, November 11, 1998

Answers

"Ocean Solitaire" by Bill Mckibben. Reviewed by Wayne Opsahl.

This is an article that deals with the declining numbers of cod being caught in the waters off of Newfoundland, and the effects it has on the surrounding fishing communities. The author points out that at one time there were tens of millions of schools of large cod that inhabited the shores of Newfoundland before the big fishing trollers started not only over-harvesting fish, but ruining the cods spawning grounds as well. What once were fertile fishing grounds are now, for the most part, inhabited by other species of fish that have no value at the dinner table. A culture that once existed because of cod, is slowly disappearing; along with the fish. The people that have depended on the cod are now having to move to other places to find other ways of making a living. The foreign vessels that are harvesting most of the fish are using more sophisticated equipment than either the people of Newfoundland, or the fish can compete with. The author does not have any real solution to the problem because if you eliminate the a total ban on cod fishing completely for a couple of decades to let the cod come back to more healthier numbers, the fishing communities will for sure be lost along with their heritage. One of the suggestions was to maybe do some fish farming that could produce a number of fish that might help solve some of the worlds fish shortages, but we would probably have to tap into some of the worlds grain market to feed the fish that we need to eat with the ever increasing worlds population. More regulations seem to be a waist of time because there is not enough man power to control the industry.

My Response: The fishing industry is so far out of control that their is no real solution to solve the problem. As for the people of Newfoundland, and their fishing communities, they were sold out by their own government. They knew what was coming twenty years ago, and did nothing to stop foreign vessels from fishing in their waters until it was too late. The United States does most of their cod fishing in international waters, and I would guess that we are probably going to continue until it is not feasible to bring our fishing fleets out there anymore. Modern technology has become so advanced when it comes to the fishing industry. When the season for cod fishing opens up, it usually last for only about thirty days because the fishing trollers know right where the fish are, and race to catch everything as fast as they can until there is nothing left. As each day goes bye, you see fewer and fewer fish being brought into the boat-so it's a race with all the other fishing fleets from around the world to see who can process the most fish in a short period of time. The sad thing about it is, that all of the other fish that you catch in your tow, like salmon, Link Cod, See Rays, and squid, are not only killed in the process, but have to be thrown over-board to Gulls.

-- Anonymous, November 18, 1998

Wayne- Interesting article. I think that commercial fisherman have created real problems in their attempts to make a living. I think I'll stick to walleye fishing just for the fun of it. We all need to make a living and so I can understand their desire to increase their productivity, but when is enough, enough?

-- Anonymous, January 15, 1999

Hello Wayne, The article you wrote about has a myriad of implications for society as a whole. Just one of the issues deals with our need to consume more and more. But when we look at the environment we become aware that it can not tolerate allthe abuse we render. I would be interested in any thoughts you might have? By the way, my name is John Hansen. I'm the discussion facilitator and a member of the communication department faculty here at UMD. Hope to hear from you! John

-- Anonymous, March 03, 1999