Comeback cod?

Decline of fish stocks “still reversible”

Global fish stocks could collapse by 2050 if commercial fishing isn’t curbed - but proper protection can produce dramatic effects. That’s the two-edged message in a recent report in Science magazine.

Stocks have already collapsed in almost a third of sea fisheries, the authors say. And this biodiversity loss is having a wider effect on our marine ecosystems - a decline in species further up the food chain, creating more coastal flooding and a reduction in water quality.

However, the scientists conclude, “at this point, these trends are still reversible”;  protected areas can bring a fourfold increase in productivity. Food for thought for Defra, which is putting out its marine bill for its second consultation in March. - Hannah Bullock

11 January 2007

Hannah Bullock