Unsustainable Harvests
2018 has been designated the 3rd International Year of the Reef – IYOR2018. This week, Dr. Farahnaz Solomon, Marine Biologist and IYORTT team member looks at one of the major services provided by coral reefs fisheries and laments the destructive and wasteful methods used to harvest wild fish. Coral reefs are found worldwide in tropical oceans. They cover an area of about 284, 300 km2 around the shores of over 100 countries (Photo 1). Overlaying a human population map with a coral reef distribution map shows that 10% of the world’s population live within 100 km of coral reefs. Excluding the reasonably wealthy developing countries, 75 percent of these individuals (>400 million) are from the poorest developing countries. Most live in rural environments and are likely to be dependent on reef resources to support their livelihoods and for food security. Photo 1: Global Distribution of Coral Reefs. Source: NOAA Due to their nearshore locations in relatively...