Seaspiracy Highlights - Part 3

THE LARGEST TRAWL NETS ARE SO BIG THAT THEY CAN SWALLOW WHOLE CATHEDRALS OR UP TO 13 JUMBO JETS

EVERY YEAR 25 MILLION ACRES OF FOREST ARE LOST, EQUIVALENT TO LOSING ABOUT 27 SOCCER FIELDS PER MINUTE

BOTTOM TRAWLERS WIPE OUT 3.9 BILLION ACRES PER YEAR, EQUIVALENT TO LOSING 4,316 SOCCER FIELDS PER MINUTE OR THE LAND AREA OF...

Dr. Les Watling & Dr. Elliott Norse calculated that each year, worldwide, bottom trawlers drag an area equivalent to twice the lower 48 states of the U.S.
​
United States lower 48 states = 3,119,884.69 square miles (8,080,464.3 km2)

x2 = 6239769.38 square miles or 16160928.6 km2
 
Equivalent to: 3,993,452,426.567 ACRES (3.9 Billion Acres)

Also equivalent to the land area of:

UK: 59921819.5 acres,                    

France, 159086692 acres,

Spain: 125032852 acres

Germany: 88221810.4 acres

Italy:  74462241.4 acres

Sweden:  110563596 acres

Finland: 83626391.6 acres

Norway: 95185734.3 acres

Portugal : 22786081 acres

Denmark: 10648759 acres

Iceland: 25451854.3 acres

Japan: 93398915.2 acres

Greenland: 535230256.3 acres

Mexico:  485314969.2 acres

Thailand : 126794713 acres

Australia : 1900734594 acres

1 soccer field = approx. 1.76 acres

Minutes in a year: 525,600

Therefore, 3,993,452,426 divided by 525,600 (mins per year) = 7597.89274353 acres per minute.

Then, divide that by 1.76 acres (soccer field size) =

4,316.98 Soccer fields per min

MANY RESEARCHERS BELIEVE WE SHOULD BE PROTECTING 30% OF OUR OCEAN

ONLY 5% OF THE OCEAN ARE MARINE PROTECTED AREAS

90% OF THE 5% OF MARINE PROTECTED AREAS STILL ALLOW FISHING

SIERRA CLUB DIDN'T WANT TO COME OUT AGAINST HUNTING ETC. BECAUSE THEY THOUGHT THEY WOULD LOSE MEMBERSHIP SUPPORT IF THEY DID

OVER 80% OF THE INCOME OF THE MSC COMES FROM LICENSING THEIR "SUSTAINABLE" LABELS

IN PAPUA NEW GUINEA 18 FISHERIES OBSERVERS WENT MISSING WITHIN LESS THAN FIVE YEARS

THE FISHING INDUSTRY RECEIVES $35 BILLION IN SUBSIDIES.

COMPARATIVELY IT WOULD ONLY COST $30 BILLION TO COMBAT WORLD HUNGER.
​
IN THE UNITED STATES ONE IN THREE WILD CAUGHT FISH IMPORTED IS CAUGHT ILLEGALLY

APPROX. 24,000 FISHERIES WORKERS DIE EVERY YEAR IN FISHERY RELATED JOBS
 
WEST AFRICAN CANOE FISHERMEN HAVE THE HIGHEST MORTALITY RATES OF ANY FISHERIES JOB ON EARTH

FOREIGN SUBSIDIZED FISHING IN WEST AFRICA CONTRIBUTED TO THE CAUSE OF THE EBOLA EPIDEMIC

THE INDUSTRY CLAIM ONLY 1.2KG OF FEED IS NEEDED TO PRODUCE 1KG OF FARMED SALMON. HOWEVER THE FEED IS MADE UP OF DRIED FISH MEAL AND PROCESSED OIL WHICH HIDE THE TRUE WEIGHT OF FISH BEING USED.

TODAY 50% OF THE WORLD'S SEAFOOD IS FARM-RAISED

EACH SALMON FARM IN SCOTLAND PRODUCES AS MUCH ORGANIC WASTE EQUIVALENT TO A TOWN OF BETWEEN 10 AND 20,000 PEOPLE EACH YEAR

UP TO 50% OF FARMED SALMON DIE FROM EGG TO PLATE

FARMED FISH CAN GET ANEMIA, LICE INFESTATIONS, INFECTIOUS DISEASES, CHLAMYDIA AND HEART DISEASE

FARMED SALMON HAVE COLOR ADDED THROUGH FEED (ASTAXANTHIN) TO MAKE THEIR FLESH ORANGE/PINK

38% OF THE MANGROVE DEFORESTATION WORLDWIDE IS CAUSED BY SHRIMP FARMING

SOMEWHERE IN THE REGION OF 51,000+ FISHING BOATS OPERATE IN THAI WATERS

FISH HAVE THE CAPACITY TO EXPERIENCE PAIN AND FEAR

HERRINGS COMMUNICATE BY FLATULENCE

FISH CONTAIN HEAVY METALS, MERCURY, DIOXINS, PLASTIC COMPOUNDS, HEXACHLOROBENZENES AND PCB'S

THE CONTAMINANTS IN FISH OFTEN OUTWEIGH THE BENEFITS OF OMEGA 3 FATTY ACIDS

FISH DON'T MAKE OMEGA 3 FATTY ACIDS, ALGAE DO

THE RUN-OFF FROM TRADITIONAL ANIMAL AGRICULTURE IMPACTS THE OCEAN BY CREATING DEAD ZONES

So those are all of the highlights from the documentary, in my next blog I will give the response from Greenpeace and what we can all do next!

It is a very good and interesting documentary, for me the bottom line is that commercial fishing is out of control in many ways and something needs to be done to slow down the effects.  As a family we have decided to not eat tuna fish anymore. There is so much information available and it is very confusing, so we decided to think logically and one thing that we can do is no more tuna.  

If everyone does their bit then change can happen, we need to hit these large corporations where it hurts, their bank balance.  Unfortunately at the moment money rules even more than it ever has.

The blog song for today is"Do you remember the first time?" by Pulp

TTFN