Sustainable seafood guide to preserve fish species

[Del 245]

unsure where to put this as we dont have a media section on the forum. ( or do we???) http://www.perthnow.com.au/news/special-features/sustainable-seafood-guide-to-preserve-fish-species/story-e6frg19l-1225958442124i know its WA based.. but what are your thoughts..SEAFOOD lovers should avoid dhufish, cod and groper, and choose whiting, calamari and herring instead, scientists say.A new guide listing the species of fish that diners should buy to help save the world's seafood stocks urges people to swap popular choices such as shark, commercial scallops, snapper and some tuna for bream, flathead and mussels.The 2010 Australian Sustainable Seafood Guide, produced by the Australian Marine Conservation Society, analysed data from more than 300 government and peer-reviewed scientific studies and rates seafood according to its sea-to-plate journey.Species that were overfished, imported or caught using environmentally destructive methods, such as trawl nets which haul and kill large numbers of bycatch or unwanted species go on the don't-buy list.Three-quarters of the world's oceans are ranked officially as over-exploited, depleted or fished to their limit, according to the UN.Fifteen Australian fish species are overfished.AMCS director and environmental scientist Darren Kindleysides said that while shoppers had hundreds of types of seafood to choose from, it was hard to distinguish which were sustainable.``We want to help people to make informed choices,'' Mr Kindleysides said.``We're not saying don't eat seafood; we're just saying make wise choices that will be better for the long-term health of the environment.``Sustainable fisheries are good for consumers, for the environment and for the long-term interests of the fishing industry.''He said 50,000 leatherback and 200,000 loggerhead turtles were caught in the world's longline fisheries each year, and gillnets set for sharks caught and killed hundreds of endangered Australian sea lions each breeding cycle.In the past few years the number of species that are overfished has declined from 19 to 15, but some species, such as snapper and bigeye tuna, have moved into the overfished category.The guide is available online at www.sustainableseafood.org.au or by freecall 1800 066 299.

[Ranger 48]

I wonder?Does this mean that WE make a conscious choice to eat Slimey Mackeral and Mussels, while Pro fishers continue to capture Snapper and Tuna, but send it ALL overseas for the export market?Or will the nice professional fishermen decide to stop Tuna fishing and instead start mussel farming?

[Del 245]

i kinda agree Ranger, ive often thought if we limited our exports and looked after Australians needs first. Then we woudlnt have have of these sustainability problems.

[Ranger 48]

I agree! The problem is, with the prices being paid on the open market, from a fishers point of view, when that's how you make a living, and with the quality of our seafood, you'd be mad not to take advantage of increasing your profit margin through export.As much as I'd like to see quotas cut, and top quality Australian seafood remaining in Australia, I can't really see that ever happening.

[Del 245]

im not against exports.. but surely if we are finding our numbers dropping in our local waters.. its the exports that should be cut back to feed our own nation first.. just my views. i just dont believe in raping our country to supply the rest of the worlds needs. when we injure our own nations ability to survive.goes with a lot of things.. imports/exports of oil/gas/seafood/citrus/automotive markets the list goes on..it really should come down to what is sustainable for AUSTRALIA not for the world.