#blast fishing

[excitementshewrote]

Blast Fishing

[thefreemanreport]

Why does fisherman utilize a soda for fishing.

Why does most fisherman utilize a soda for fishing.

What began as a day like any other ended with a haunting quest to source a viral video of a man apparently capturing catfish using Coca-Cola brand soda, Mentos, and an ordinary egg.

If all that left you feeling puzzled, you’re not alone. Originally posted to YouTube on November 1, the video in question shows an unidentified man adding Coke, Mentos, and an egg yolk to a muddy hole.

The man…

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[kadus64]

Bomb Fishing

[vindays]

These Facts On Ruthless Method Of Blast Fishing Are Hard To Ignore

Blast Fishing

Blast Fishing or Dynamite fishing is a method used by fishermen across Africa (particularly Tanzania), Southeast Asia and the Aegean Sea.

What is it exactly?

This is a crude method where fishermen use dynamite bombs or homemade bombs involving a bottled mixture of kerosene and fertilizers to detonate an explosion underwater.

The shock waves created by the explosion kills fishes in a…

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[nafoussi-blog]

Dynamite Fishing in Lebanon (Video)

Dynamite Fishing in Lebanon (Video)

Pretty sure this is illegal… Video via Youtube. Spotted here. Read more: http://dailypicksandflicks.com/2014/05/26/dynamite-fishing-in-lebanon-video/

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[exploretraveler]

Philippine Coral Reefs

Philippine Coral Reefs

Philippine Coral Reefs are home to some of the finest marine environments in the world. The Philippine Islands form a part of the “coral triangle”. This triangle is home to thousands of species of fish and other marine animals.   The reefs of the tropics are some of the most prosperous of all the marine environments on earth. Philippine Coral Reefs are some of the richest…

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[thingsofthewild]

Blast/Dynamite Fishing

Fisheries throughout the world often exercise destructive fish-catching techniques. One such method, similar to cyanide fishing (click for link), is blast fishing which has been estimated to destroy 3.75% of live coral cover each year. For this technique, fishermen drop bombs—usually made from fertilizer and kerosene or diesel fuel—near large coral reefs that display a variety of marine species. When the bombs explode, the resulting shock waves stun—often even kill--marine organisms, and can also cause significant damage to coral structures. Fishermen will then capture the vulnerable fish using dip-nets, and ship them off to different countries for the use of aquarium pets.

Though the technique harvests large quantities of the targeted species (grouper, butterfly fish, surgeonfish, parrot fish, etc.), untargeted animals are often affected as well. Being sessile animals (after the larval stage), coral require a solid structure for attachment so that they can develop and grow. When blast fishermen detonate bombs near coral heads, the explosions shatter reefs and cause corals to deteriorate to rubble. The shifting of the coral environment from rubble to dust can kill coral even before they have time develop and rebuild. It can take anywhere between 100-106 years of recovery for a coral reef system to rebuild itself after blast fishing.

Though the technique is illegal, the practice has recently been recorded in about thirty countries ranging from Southeast Asia, Oceania, and even in Eastern Africa. Blast fishing has caused major damage and loss of coral reef ecosystems, including over 50% of Southeast Asian reefs (Caldwell, Fox, 2006). Economically speaking, blast fishing is really only needed for short-term gains. After years and years of this method taking place, the health of the coral reefs has deteriorated resulting in a decrease in fish populations. Fishermen are finding it much more difficult to locate and capture valuable fish, and tourists have lost the desire to visit these once beautiful habitats.

Similar to the actions taken in regards to cyanide fishing, countries have begun to take small steps in the hopes of stopping not only blast fishing, but destructive fishing as a whole. Education about the process has spread in local communities, and stronger regulations and policies have been placed in these areas. A combination of policies, laws, improved enforcement, and enhanced public awareness are small steps taken in areas that practice destructive fishing.

[hunterwriterer-blog]

GLOBAL AND LOCAL FACTORS LEADING TO THE DESTRUCTION OF REEFS IN INDONESIA AND THE EFFECTS THIS HAS ON INDONESIA’S SUSTAINABILITY

Indonesia, a third world country, is the largest island nation in the world containing more than 15,000 islands.  Among these islands are countless numbers of reefs, which are vital to the earth’s overlapping ecosystems.  It is estimated that 18% percent of the world’s reefs lie in Indonesian waters (RRSEA, 2002).  These reefs have an abundance of various life-forms, and each reef functions as its own eco-system.  There are more than 480 different types of hard coral in eastern Indonesia alone.  Even more impressive is the fact that many species of coral, still undiscovered, may lie in these waters (Suharsono, 2001).  As far as the fish and sea creatures that inhabit these waters, it is said that “the greatest diversity of coral reef fish in the world are found in Indonesia, with more than 1,650 species in eastern Indonesia alone” (Suharsono, 2001).  Ocean reefs, with their colorful flora and fauna, can be compared with the plants and animals of the tropical rainforests of Central and South America.  I have had the privilege of SCUBA diving on a number of the Indonesian reefs.  The brilliance and beauty of these reefs as well as the fish inhabiting them are beyond what words can describe.  However, these reefs are being faced with a number of man-made destructive forces that threaten their very existence.  These external destructive forces are; cyanide and blast fishing techniques, over pollution of the oceans, human population growth and demand, deforestation, as well as reef bleaching.  We can all agree that the reefs need to be saved from their certain peril, but at what cost to Indonesians?  Can a symbiotic relationship be formed between the people of Indonesia and the natural resources under these watery depths around them?  Or, are they doomed to over usage, over pollution, and the ultimate destruction of the very resources with which many make a living today?  The time to develop an answer to this question of sustainability is now before it is too late.

The first problem man is causing to these reefs is over fishing and in particular, using cyanide and blast techniques in doing so.  Basically the blast technique involves a person dropping heavy explosives into the water, and when the bomb goes off underwater, the seismic wave stuns the fish and they float to the surface.  The fisherman then trolls around the surface and collects the fish he stunned to sell at the market or to keep for himself.  This sounds horrible and unfair towards the fish right?  Obviously, but the problem comes in when one becomes aware that “twenty-five percent of Indonesia’s gross national product comprises the coastal and marine industries” (Dahuri, 2000).  This includes fishing, and to some degree, blast fishing.  The oceans have provided Indonesians as well as many other cultures around the world with a critical renewable food resource for thousands of years, which is why it is so important for the reefs to be able to continue supporting these human populations.  How long can humans exploit the reefs as a resource before they overexploit them?  How will the Indonesians live their lives without this resource once they overexploit it?  Will there be dire global implications if nearly 20% of the oceans’ reefs simply disappear due to the effects of man?

These explosions are going on all around the Indonesian archipelago at alarming rates.  For example, on the island of Maluku, International Coral Reef Initiative Country Report stated that around 65% of the reefs show substantial signs of these blasts to the point where even the smallest sea creatures can no longer live on the reef (Suharsono, 2001).  The other technique is very similar, and in many ways, more deadly.  The fisherman uses cyanide and kills the fish and the reef in the surrounding waters.  The fisherman then collects the dead fish on the surface and takes them to the market or keeps them for himself.  This form of unsustainable fishing is more dangerous because it literally poisons the reef, and then the poison drifts to other parts of the ocean spread by oceanic currents.  The global effects of this form of fishing are beyond comprehension, and are not truly measurable.  Cyanide fishing is an uncontrollable, reckless part of this human environment interaction system which puts the reefs’ sustainability in peril.  Another problem with blasting and cyanide is that all of the profits are extremely short-term and mathematically unsustainable.  Once a reef ecosystem is destroyed, it could take it hundreds of years to return to its once bountiful state.  So, when a fisherman blows up a quarter of a random reef to make a good month’s pay, he is blowing up hundreds of years of nature’s hard work.  This practice is not sustainable, because this practice self destructs itself.  The reef can’t replenish itself fast enough to keep up with man’s destructive forces.  The organization Reefs at Risk in Southeast Asia “estimates that the net economic loss in Indonesia from blast fishing over the next 20 years will be at least US $570 million” (RRSEA, 2001).  This figure proves that blast fishing is not a good way of fishing, and that something needs to be done immediately.  The Indonesian government has made some attempts at stopping these destructive fishing techniques by placing steep fines if caught, but it is impossible to patrol the countless reefs and search the fisherman to stop it.  So, this unsustainable practice goes on uninterrupted.  A group has however begun an educational campaign to show this blasting is hurting the fish populations as well as the reefs.  This group is called TERANGI, and they are responsible for producing a comic book series showing children the harmful effects of blast fishing.  TERANGI is also teamed up with the Ford Motor Company and the Indonesian Coral, Shell and Ornamental Fish Association to put more pressure on the Indonesian government to help save the reefs (TERANGI, 2008).  The problem with this is that Indonesia is a third world country, and while it is growing and improving, it still has many areas that require more time, effort, and money than a full on campaign to stop blast fishing.  While this is understandable on the economic standpoint, the reefs don’t get reprieve because the Indonesian government is spending money elsewhere and putting them on the back burner.  This unsustainable action is also growing more popular, as it requires almost no effort compared to traditional ways of fishing and is as efficient as it is deadly.  So as both the Indonesian and global population grow, it is logical that more fishermen will decide to go the more efficient high-yielding route, putting more and more burden on the reefs.  If that wasn’t enough, there are many more environmental stressors are critically harming these human sustaining jewels of the sea.

The next man-made environmental stressor that the reefs are facing is a global human population increase as well as an Indonesian population increase, which leads to an increase in deforestation and pollution.  “The average annual deforestation rate in Indonesia between 1985 and 1997 was 1.7 million hectares” (D. Holmes, 2000).  Today, with a larger demand for lumber and an increase in efficient technology, this rate of deforestation is much higher.  All of this deforestation and other land altercations caused by man, including urban expansion and agricultural expansion, have increased the “sediment discharge and pollution from industrial effluents, and sewage” into the oceans, ultimately affecting the reefs (Edinger, 1998).  Pollution is obviously very unhealthy for reefs, and has already shown its horrible effects.  “Reefs affected by land-based pollution have shown thirty to fifty percent less diversity at depths of 3 meters, and forty to one-hundred and sixty percent less diversity at 10 meters, in comparison to pristine reefs”  (Edinger, 1998).  This shows that pollution does play a significant roll in the health of a reef, and it is obvious that there is a direct correlation between an increase in population and an increase in the pollution they produce.  More people cause more pollution.  So, the combination of a growth in human population and demand for natural resources and increases in pollution and deforestation on the reefs yields a system that is not in the very least bit sustainable, and on the verge of breaking.  However, these are not the only problems the reefs are facing.

Another problem that the sea creature populations are facing due to environmental factors caused by humans is the deforestations of sea dwelling mangroves (NOAA).  Many fish as well as members of the shrimp and crab family spawn in the mangroves, and the immature life forms live in these mangroves until they are old enough to fend for themselves in the open waters of the ocean.  With the disappearance of these mangroves, a very important chain in the great circle of life is broken, and this causes catastrophic problems to all species of fish. Not only are people deforesting these mangroves, but they are also over fishing them, which overlaps with the previous problem I discussed earlier.  The increasing Indonesian population and over fishing combined with the deforestation and pollution yields a system that is crumbling from the bottom to the top.

A third problem the reefs are facing goes by the name of “bleaching.”  This is the most destructive force of all, even more destructive than all the other factors combined, and is global in scope.  Bleaching is the corals response to changing temperature conditions, often ultimately killing the entire coral colony itself. This delicate ecosystem can be completely wiped out due to a constant temperature swing of only a few degrees.

“Reefs are dependent on specific environmental conditions. Most require a specific water temperature range (23 to 29 °C) for optimal growth. Some can tolerate higher temperatures, but only for limited periods of time. In addition, specific levels of salinity (32 to 42 parts per thousand), water clarity and light levels generally must be consistent throughout the year for corals to grow optimally. Many scientists, however, believe that impacts associated with global climate change, such as increased concentrations of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases, are disrupting the delicate balance of the ocean’s chemistry. Warming trends can elevate seawater temperatures and levels as well, rendering conditions unfit for coral survival” (NMFS, 2001).

This problem is caused by man’s impact on the global environment, especially those actions which increase carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases.  This is a global problem, but a problem none the less, affecting the sustainability of the Indonesian population’s dependency on the ocean’s bounty.

“In addition, natural phenomena, such as the El Niño weather pattern, can have lasting, and sometimes devastating, effects on coral reefs. During an El Niño season, easterly trade winds weaken, which depresses normal oceanic upwelling processes and affects the climate. Rainfall increases along the eastern Pacific, while Indonesia and Australia experience drought conditions. El Niño can lead to increased sea-surface temperatures, decreased sea level, and altered salinity due to excessive rainfall” (Forrester, 1997).

When the oceans chemistry is off the reefs weaken, and when combined with over fishing and other toxic materials in the water, the reefs go into a critical condition, and their immune system basically becomes a wreck.  This is where the bleaching begins.  Bleaching is described as any form of destruction where the (white) skeleton of the coral head is exposed.  It takes a lot of stress on a coral for it to finally give in, but once it does, there is an overwhelming probability that the entire coral colony will be extinguished.  If the skeleton is exposed, then that part of the coral is completely dead, and open for infection by algae, disease, or a number of other deadly parasites. “According to many coral researchers, rates of disease outbreaks are increasing and affecting more reef species” (NMFS, 2001). “Scientists believe that the presence of certain stress factors can create environmental conditions favorable to disease microbes, while rendering corals weaker and more vulnerable to colonization. Currently, the most common diseases affecting coral are white-band disease, black-band disease, white plague and yellow-blotch disease” (NMFS 2001). Bleaching can be caused by many things, including sunlight exposure during high tides, water temperature rising due to a greenhouse effect, chemical change due to pollution, over fishing, destructive storms that hurt and bruise the coral heads, outbreaks of coral disease, and finally natural predatory destruction  (NOAA).  While some of these reasons for coral bleaching are natural, most can be traced back to man’s reckless misuse of the environment.  While I was staying on Bali, my dive instructor took me SCUBA diving on a bleached reef to show me what it looked like, and I have to say it was the worst dive of my life.  Imagine diving on a huge white rock with nothing more than a few crabs scurrying about.  Compare this to a vibrant, fully functional reef ecosystem full of flora and fauna and you begin to see the picture.  The global magnitude of this problem cannot be understated.  “Current estimates note that 10 percent of all coral reefs are degraded beyond recovery. Thirty percent are in critical condition and may die within 10 to 20 years. Experts predict that if current pressures are allowed to continue unabated, 60 percent of the world’s coral reefs may die completely by 2050” (CRTF 2000). This is over half of the world’s reefs in less than fifty years. The consequences of doing nothing would be dire.  Intertwined ecosystems all over the world could feel the pressure and possibly even collapse.  Indonesians as well as hundreds of other groups around the world depend on the ocean’s bounty for survival.  Bleaching isn’t an Indonesian fisherman’s problem; coral bleaching is a global community crisis. Coral reef bleaching is an ever-growing threat that greatly decreases the sustainability of the Earth’s fragile eco-systemic balance as a whole, as well as the reefs in Indonesia.

So what can be done?  Obviously the Indonesians are in a conundrum of consumption crisis.  We know that something must be done to increase the system’s faltering sustainability.  However, we can’t simply change people’s ways of life.  Globalization has affected the sustainability of this thousand-year-old adaptive system of the Indonesian fisherman in a very negative way.  Due to globalization; new technologies, cultural ideologies and pressures were imposed upon these fishermen.  Somewhere along the line, they began straying away from their traditional and sustainable mode of fishing in favor of a more productive, less sustainable modes of blast and cyanide fishing.  Globalization has had the same effect on deforestation.  A foreign demand for lumber and a lifestyle of better financial opportunity came to the residents of this archipelago, who threw old ideas of conservation and sustainability to the wind without a second thought to chase profits.  The environment is seen as a never-ending source of capitol, when it should be seen as a fragile, delicate balance of life.  Advanced medicine came and saved thousands of lives, and growing populations needed more food from the sea.  Indonesian fishermen began over fishing and taxing their finite resources heavily.  The growing populations also produced more pollution after coming into contact with certain wasteful Western ideaologies due to globalization.  Above all, the global community’s reliance on fossil fuels and other forms of energy waste led to a quickening of global temperature change, which in turn led to the destructive coral bleaching.  All of these actions caused by globalization have had negative effects on the reefs’ health, which have had a negative effect on fish populations, which will eventually have a negative effect on the Indonesians who fish these reefs, which will have a negative effect on life around the world.

The case of the Indonesian reefs is just one part of a much bigger problem.  All over the world one can see that the human species is overburdening the environment through overpopulation, pollution, and many other stressors.  We have surpassed the carrying capacity of our planet.  But, once again, we cannot simply stop our need for natural resources.  It is what makes us human, and we have been feeding this hunger since we became human.  We are the species that has to power to directly effect and manipulate the environment and systems in which we live and participate in.  We are the species that can understand and make sense of the world around us and make cognitive changes for better or for worse.  What we decide to do with this power and our watery blue planet us ultimately up to us.