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Jack mackerel caught by a Chilean purse seiner Fishing down the food web. Overfishing is the removal of a species of fish (i.e. fishing) from a body of water at a rate greater than that the species can replenish its population naturally (i.e. the overexploitation of the fishery's existing fish stock), resulting in the species becoming increasingly underpopulated in that area.
Human activities affect marine life and marine habitats through overfishing, habitat loss, the introduction of invasive species, ocean pollution, ocean acidification and ocean warming. These impact marine ecosystems and food webs and may result in consequences as yet unrecognised for the biodiversity and continuation of marine life forms. [3]
Examples of unsustainable fishing methods exist globally and impacts the harvest species, as well as all marine species that coexist or rely on the targeted harvest. [ 19 ] Bottom trawling in Canadian waters have shown the destructive effects of the fishing method.
Overfishing not only causes negative impacts on biodiversity and ecosystem functioning, but also reduces fish production, which subsequently leads to negative social and economic consequences. [2] According to a 2008 UN report, the world's fishing fleets are losing US$50 billion each year due to depleted stocks and poor fisheries management.
The overfishing list reflects species that have an unsustainably high harvest rate. NOAA also keeps a list of overfished stocks. Those are species that have a total population size that is too low.
Overfishing can be sustainable. [dubious – discuss] According to Hilborn, overfishing can be "a misallocation of societies' resources", but it does not necessarily threaten conservation or sustainability". [2] Overfishing is traditionally defined as harvesting so many fish that the yield is less than it would be if fishing were reduced. [2]
The environmental impact of fishing includes issues such as the availability of fish, overfishing, fisheries, and fisheries management; as well as the impact of industrial fishing on other elements of the environment, such as bycatch. These issues are part of marine conservation, and are addressed in fisheries science programs.
Overfishing (2006 Pilot Environmental Performance Index) Although there is a decline of fisheries due to climate change, a related cause for this decrease is due to over-fishing. [58] Over-fishing exacerbates the effects of climate change by creating conditions that make a fishing population more sensitive to environmental changes.