Archive for endangered fish

Help Protect Australias Coral Sea

July 5, 2011 · Filed under endangered fish, enviro facts, Great Barrier Reef, Ocean acidification, water quality · Tagged ,

The Coral Sea is a tropical marine jewel which lies east of the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park. It’s one of the last places on Earth where large marine animals can still be found in great numbers. It’s one of the last remaining places on Earth where populations of large ocean fish – sharks, tuna and billfish – have not been drastically reduced. With 90% of large ocean fish gone from the world’s oceans over the last 50 years due to overfishing, this makes the Coral Sea worth protecting. The Coral Sea has spectacular coral reefs, remote islands, towering underwater mountains and deep-sea canyons. Its abundant wildlife includes whales, dolphins, sea turtles, sharks and rays; seabirds; large ocean fish such as tuna, marlin, barracuda and swordfish and a diverse range of corals and reef fish.

We need to act now before it is to late. These beautiful natural santuraries are under threat and we cannot let them be destroyed!

for more information please head to: http://www.protectourcoralsea.org.au/coral-sea-help-protect-australia-s-coral-sea

source: www.greentimes.com.au

Leave a comment »

new 230,000 square miles sanctuary for whales and dolphins (via Eco Green Travel)

October 29, 2010 · Filed under endangered fish, enviro facts, marine protection, marine stewardship council · Tagged

new 230,000 square miles sanctuary for whales and dolphins Dolphins, whales, and dugongs will be safe from hunting in the waters surrounding the Pacific nation of Palau. At the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) in Nagoya, Japan, Palau’s Minister of the Environment, Natural Resources and Tourism, Harry Fritz, announced the establishment of a marine mammal sanctuary covering over 230,000 square miles (60,000 square kilometers) of the nation’s waters, an area the size of Mongolia. (photo source- outd … Read More

via Eco Green Travel

Comments (1) »

new 230,000 square miles sanctuary for whales and dolphins

October 26, 2010 · Filed under endangered fish, enviro facts, environmental facts, united nations · Tagged , ,

Dolphins, whales, and dugongs will be safe from hunting in the waters surrounding the Pacific nation of Palau. At the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) in Nagoya, Japan, Palau’s Minister of the Environment, Natural Resources and Tourism, Harry Fritz, announced the establishment of a marine mammal sanctuary covering over 230,000 square miles (60,000 square kilometers) of the nation’s waters, an area the size of Mongolia.

(photo source- outdoors.webshots.com)

"Palau’s dugongs are the most isolated and endangered population in the world. We also have at least 11 species of cetaceans in our waters, including a breeding population of Sperm Whales and possibly as many as 30 other species of whales and dolphins

that utilize our EEZ. This sanctuary will promote sustainable whale-watching tourism, already a growing multi-million dollar global industry, as an economic opportunity for the people of Palau," Fritz said in Nagoya.

Already, last year Palau declared its waters a sanctuary for sharks. Sharks have been decimated worldwide, with some species’ population plunging by 99 percent, due to by catch, overconsumption, and the shark-fin trade, whereby caught sharks’ fins are cut off and the animals

are thrown back into the water to die.

Although many populations of whales are rebounding after centuries of commercial whaling, some are still threatened by whaling by Iceland, Japan, and Norway

, as well as pollution. Dolphins are often killed as by catch and suffer from widespread marine pollution.

Source: http://news.mongabay.com/2010/1024-hance_mammal_sanctuary.html

Comments (4) »

The End of the Line for Fish?

June 20, 2009 · Filed under eco film, endangered fish, marine protection, marine stewardship council, Uncategorized · Tagged , , , , ,

The film has three messages for consumers, citizens and companies:

Ask before you buy: only eat sustainable seafood.

Tell politicians: respect the science, cut the fishing fleet

Join the campaign: for marine protected areas and responsible fishing

We hope that when people buy fish in a shop or in restaurant, they will ask where it comes from; whether it is from a sustainable source, whether it is an endangered or over-exploited species.

There are useful guides to what fish you can buy with a (fairly) clear conscience. In the UK one is produced by the Marine Conservation Society. You can find the guide on their website.

In the USA, the Monterey Bay Aquarium issues one. You can click through from here. www.SeafoodWatch.org

And the Marine Stewardship Council runs a certification scheme for fish produced according to principles of sustainability, which you can find out about on the MSC website

But we also want people to put pressure on politicians to listen to the scientists and act upon their recommendations. Write to your representative. Sign up to our Pledges.

And, finally, join the campaign to make more of the oceans protected areas, where industrial fishing is not allowed and where fish stocks can replenish themselves.

At the moment only 3 per cent of the world’s oceans are marine protected areas.

You can learn more about why they should be increased and those who are campaigning for them, on the websites on our Organisations page.

Imagine a world without fish: movie trailer http://endoftheline.com/

Leave a comment »

Mekong River Dolphins Almost Extinct

June 19, 2009 · Filed under endangered fish, marine protection, Ocean acidification · Tagged , ,

Heavy pollution in the Mekong river has pushed freshwater dolphins in Cambodia and Laos to the brink of extinction, the

World Wide Fund For Nature (WWF) has said. Reported by the BBC, WWF said that only 64 to 76 dolphins remain in the

Mekong.

High toxic levels of pesticides, mercury and other pollutants have been found in more than 50 calves that have died since

2003. The group said it was investigating how contamination had entered the Mekong, and has called for a cross-border plan to

help the dolphins survive.

Leave a comment »

Sustainable Seafood Choices at Fairmont Hotels & Resorts help to Conserve Precious Marine Species

June 19, 2009 · Filed under endangered fish, enviromental hotels, green hotel options · Tagged , , , , ,

Fairmont’s hotels and resorts worldwide maintains a comprehensive commitment to purchasing local, organic and sustainable food items and as part of their sustainable food policy, will remove threatened fish species like Chilean Sea Bass and Blue fin Tuna from their restaurant menus and will also align themselves locally with reputable seafood watch organizations, ensuring guests continue to be provided with a comprehensive selection of sustainable seafood choices. This commitment to ocean sustainability is all about working closely with reputable suppliers who purchase fish that are harvested in ways that limit damage to marine or aquatic habitats. Two seafood choices that are most at risk – and have been eliminated them from its food service operations are:

  • The ChileanSea Bass – also called Patagonia Tooth, this is a long-life fish, meaning it does not reproduce quickly. Due to worldwide popularity of this menu item, their numbers have been dwindling dramatically from aggressive and illegal fishing.
  • The Blue fin Tuna – heavily over-fished in international waters, the plight of this species is so serious that the World Conservation Union lists Southern Blue fin Tuna in its grouping of most threatened wildlife, with their numbers having declined by 97% over the last four decades.

Some of the Fairmont Hotels ocean sustainability initiatives are:

· Mexico’s Fairmont Mayakoba has partnered with local communities in a nearby biosphere to purchase lobster that is sustainably harvested.

· The Fairmont Orchid purchase locally sourced seafood and actively participates in regional moratoriums on any threatened fish stocks.

· The Fairmont Waterfront and The Fairmont Vancouver Airport have joined the Vancouver Aquarium’s Ocean Wise program, which is a conservation platform created to educate and empower consumers about the issues surrounding sustainable seafood.

This Hotel group strives to minimize its impact on the planet through its Green Partnership program, which focuses on key areas such as waste reduction, energy management, water conservation, and innovative community outreach programs. For more information on this I recommend you visit: www.fairmont.com/environment.

www.twitter.com/ecogreentravel      www.twitter.com/greenhotelnews        www.twitter.com/b_earths_voice

  www.facebook.com/ecogreentravel

Leave a comment »

Follow

Get every new post delivered to your Inbox.

Join 39,956 other followers