Dear Aquaculturists,
Seafood- one of our most essential sources of protein and nutrients. As one of the most important providers of food, we would like to thank you for the hard work that you put in. One day, I was curious as to where my seafood came from, and I realised that a huge percentage are imported from your fishing farms.
However, the existing fishing materials and practices have led to plastic accumulation on seabeds and in fishes. The macroplastics found include ropes, nets, basket traps, plastic bags and cable ties. These items may be mistaken as food and consumed by fishes, leading them to suffer physical abrasions, hence worsening the quality of fish. On the other hand, microplastic particles such as fibre, fragment and pellet, can also cause pollution. Once aquatic creatures consume these plastics, it may bioaccumulate and end up in the food chain. This can cause threats to human health and deteriorate the quality of fish from your farms.
Here are some solutions that could help you engage in sustainable fishing to ensure a better quality of fishes in the long run. You can utilise other more sustainable forms of fishing practices, such as rod-and reel-fishing instead of long lining (National Geographic, 2019). Rod-and-reel fishing results in less bycatch because non-targeted species can be released immediately. Alternatively, you can practice proper waste management strategies, by disposing of fishing materials. With these measures, we can reduce the amount of plastics found in seabeds and fishes, reducing threats to humans and our environment.
We hope that you can switch to sustainable fishing practices and materials to reduce pollution to water bodies and ensure you have good quality fishes in the long run.
Trailing off,
Jade and Ridzuan
References
Krüger, L., Casado-Coy, N., Valle, C., Marina Ramos, M., Sanchez-Jerez, P., Gago, J., Carretero, O., Beltran-Sanahuja, A., Sanz-Lazaro, C. (2020). Plastic debris accumulation in the seabed derived from coastal fish farming, Environmental Pollution, 257 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envpol.2019.113336
National Geographic Society (2019). sustainable fishing. National Geographic Society. Available at: https://www.nationalgeographic.org/encyclopedia/sustainable-fishing/ [Accessed 12 Sep. 2020].
