Assignment 16 - Duncan Wingfield

 Overfishing in New England

Crockett, Lee. “Overfishing 101: New England's First Year of Fishing Under Sectors.” The Pew Charitable Trusts, 31 Aug. 2011, www.pewtrusts.org/en/research-and-analysis/articles/2011/08/31/overfishing-101-new-englands-first-year-of-fishing-under-sectors. 

This article talks about the rise of overfishing or many species of fish, mainly the Atlantic cod, in the New England region. It points to the specific source of the issue in the 1980s and describes how the problem was able to spread and then later be fixed. The article lays out the restrictions laid out by both fisheries and legislators in response to the rising problem of declining numbers of fish. It looks at early numbers coming in and evaluates the success of these restrictions. This article is particularly useful for its level of intimacy and closeness to the issue and explains both the problem and a solution.

McBride, Richard S., et al. ``Changes in Size and Age at Maturity of the Northern Stock of Tilefish (Lopholatilus Chamaeleonticeps) after a Period of Overfishing.” Fishery Bulletin, vol. 111, no. 2, Apr. 2013, pp. 161–174. EBSCOhost, doi:10.7755/FB.111.2.4.

This paper is a collaboration between researchers from the University of Massachusetts school for Marine Science and Technology and Northeast Fisheries Science Center National Marine Fisheries Service, NOAA. The paper is an analysis of the size and sexual behaviors of tilefish before and after a period of overfishing. The study shows that the average size of both sexes had declined during the period of overfishing and had rebounded back to the normal size after the period of overfishing. The study also shows that the average age of the tilefish had declined since the overfishing began. This study is helpful as it provides a detailed record of the ecological effects of overfishing on populations. 

NOAA. “A Brief History of the Groundfishing Industry of New England.” NOAA Fisheries, 19 Apr. 2020, www.fisheries.noaa.gov/new-england-mid-atlantic/commercial-fishing/brief-history-groundfishing-industry-new-england. 

This article from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration talks about the cultural and economic history of the fishing industry in the New England region, starting at 1900 and going through the present day it discusses the changes in the size, practices, and economic impact of the fishing industry. The article spends a large amount of time discussing the height of the overfishing crisis and how it impacted both the environment and the economy. The article also discusses the greater societal causes behind the overfishing crisis.

Sharon, Fred. Newfoundland Cod Fishery: Lessons Not Learned?, CBC News, 28 June 2017, www.youtube.com/watch?v=0sFmT8IXGhw. 

This video segment from the CBC News takes a look at the economic impact of the overfishing crisis in the late 20th century. It goes into detail about the lawmaker behind many of the restrictions and how those restrictions impacted the workforce of the fishing industry. It talks about the mass joblessness that resulted from the crisis and how that affected the economy of the area and how those effects are still felt today. The Cod population has still not fully recovered and neither has the economy. Newfoundland is the only province in Canada that has seen a population decline since the 90s and has the highest unemployment rate of any province. This is helpful because it establishes the full gravity of the situation for the affected area and shows that it is not just an environmental issue but a mass economic problem too.

Wiedenmann, John, and Olaf P. Jensen. “Could Recent Overfishing of New England Groundfish Have Been Prevented? A Retrospective Evaluation of Alternative Management Strategies1.” Canadian Journal of Fisheries & Aquatic Sciences, vol. 76, no. 6, June 2019, pp. 1006–1018. EBSCOhost, doi:10.1139/cjfas-2018-0129.

This study takes a retrospective look at the management of fisheries during the overfishing crisis and provides an analysis of what could have been done to prevent the crisis from reaching the heights that it did. They found that none of the responses commonly used by fisheries at the time were fully sufficient enough to alleviate the problem and that all of these methods would have had to be used in conjunction to actually solve the problem. This is helpful as a source as it provides many explanations behind the cause and a retrospective on what was used to solve the problem at the time and how those can be used to help control the issue going forward.