Best Fish-Jake
Valuable Member
So first and foremost, this was an essay I wrote for my English class last year (I'm 17). It's meant to be an informative piece and I thought it'd have a good place here on R2R along with the grade book.
Cyanide fishing has some of, if not the most detrimental effects on our reefs and other marine life today. It is estimated that about 40% of currently imported fish caught in Indo- Pacific countries are caught by fishermen using Cyanide, although there is yet to be extensive research on this. The business of ornamental fishing in the Indo- Pacific is a lucrative one, with live fish paying 5x more than dead fish. Due to this, we certainly won't be seeing a drop in illegal fishing anytime soon unless steps are taken to prevent these illegally and immorally caught fish from being imported.
Cyanide fishing is performed by divers who crush up sodium cyanide tablets into squeezable bottles filled with seawater. This harmful concoction is then squirted into the faces of hiding ornamental fish which inhibits the fish’s ability to swim and respirate. Many fish’s life spans get cut short from cyanide fishing due to the development of cancers and other ailments, with many fish dying shortly after collection. Cyanide fishing not only harms the fish it is used on, but it also severely harms the surrounding reefs. Cyanide kills coral polyps and algae as well as any other organism it encounters, turning vast reefs into barren scapes of dead coral. This technique was first used in the 1960’s to supply the ornamental fish trade, while now it is also used to capturing fish with the purpose of being consumed. Over 20 tons of live fish are consumed annually in Hong Kong alone, making the use of cyanide fishing to catch these fish very disturbing.
Although cyanide fishing is illegal in most Indo- Pacific countries, enforcement of laws on open water is very difficult. In the past 6 years there have only been 6 convictions for cyanide fishing in the Philippines. One day of cyanide fishing can bring in a few dozen fish, while traditional fishing methods may average a fisherman around 3 fish per day, making cyanide fishing very attractive. Attempting to ban fishermen from collecting live fish altogether would have drastically worse effects on the trade; driving most of it underground making it even more difficult to monitor. Banning the live fish trade would also most likely cause a rise in dynamite fishing, a practice where fishermen use explosives to stun and kill nearby fish. Along with these changes, fishermen would then have to increase the number of fish they capture to compensate for the gap in pay for live fish and dead fish rendering a ban on live fishing ineffective.
Being the largest importer of live ornamental fish, the US undoubtedly has the power and resources to drastically cause cut backs on cyanide fishing. Currently the US has a law titled the Lacy Act which makes importing wildlife caught illegally in another country illegal, although currently no US agency tests fish for cyanide at the ports. Testing the fish as they arrive in the US would show just how many fish are actually being collected by ways of cyanide, as well as would decrease the amount of cyanide fishing thereon due to fishermen not being able to ship to the US without getting turned away. Recent developments from private ocean sustainability groups have shown promise from a portable device used to test for traces of cyanide in the water used to ship fish. Previous methods of testing included week long waits for results, the autopsy of fish, and many inconveniences making testing not very useful. This portable device tests water using porphyrins (organics) that bind with thiocyanate (excretions from fish exposed to cyanide). When bound with thiocyanates, porphyrins change color similar to how purple heme turns red when bound with oxygen making the test fairly simple to perform and interpret. This method of testing has only been used to test waters from Narragansett Bay with results of cyanide levels being 1-2 parts per billion. A prototype of this device is said to hopefully be released within the next 2 years.
In conclusion, cyanide fishing is detrimental to the fish it's used to catch, the reefs it’s used around, and the people that capture, consume and care for the captive fish. Fishermen in the Indo- Pacific won't change their ways unless we do something about it. There are relatively simple solutions to cutting back this injustice and it starts with us.
Thank you all for reading.. I've been in in the hobby since I was 13 and have loved it since the start. I can provide some references/ citations if anyone requests it (although I'm sure I've lost a couple).
Cyanide fishing has some of, if not the most detrimental effects on our reefs and other marine life today. It is estimated that about 40% of currently imported fish caught in Indo- Pacific countries are caught by fishermen using Cyanide, although there is yet to be extensive research on this. The business of ornamental fishing in the Indo- Pacific is a lucrative one, with live fish paying 5x more than dead fish. Due to this, we certainly won't be seeing a drop in illegal fishing anytime soon unless steps are taken to prevent these illegally and immorally caught fish from being imported.
Cyanide fishing is performed by divers who crush up sodium cyanide tablets into squeezable bottles filled with seawater. This harmful concoction is then squirted into the faces of hiding ornamental fish which inhibits the fish’s ability to swim and respirate. Many fish’s life spans get cut short from cyanide fishing due to the development of cancers and other ailments, with many fish dying shortly after collection. Cyanide fishing not only harms the fish it is used on, but it also severely harms the surrounding reefs. Cyanide kills coral polyps and algae as well as any other organism it encounters, turning vast reefs into barren scapes of dead coral. This technique was first used in the 1960’s to supply the ornamental fish trade, while now it is also used to capturing fish with the purpose of being consumed. Over 20 tons of live fish are consumed annually in Hong Kong alone, making the use of cyanide fishing to catch these fish very disturbing.
Although cyanide fishing is illegal in most Indo- Pacific countries, enforcement of laws on open water is very difficult. In the past 6 years there have only been 6 convictions for cyanide fishing in the Philippines. One day of cyanide fishing can bring in a few dozen fish, while traditional fishing methods may average a fisherman around 3 fish per day, making cyanide fishing very attractive. Attempting to ban fishermen from collecting live fish altogether would have drastically worse effects on the trade; driving most of it underground making it even more difficult to monitor. Banning the live fish trade would also most likely cause a rise in dynamite fishing, a practice where fishermen use explosives to stun and kill nearby fish. Along with these changes, fishermen would then have to increase the number of fish they capture to compensate for the gap in pay for live fish and dead fish rendering a ban on live fishing ineffective.
Being the largest importer of live ornamental fish, the US undoubtedly has the power and resources to drastically cause cut backs on cyanide fishing. Currently the US has a law titled the Lacy Act which makes importing wildlife caught illegally in another country illegal, although currently no US agency tests fish for cyanide at the ports. Testing the fish as they arrive in the US would show just how many fish are actually being collected by ways of cyanide, as well as would decrease the amount of cyanide fishing thereon due to fishermen not being able to ship to the US without getting turned away. Recent developments from private ocean sustainability groups have shown promise from a portable device used to test for traces of cyanide in the water used to ship fish. Previous methods of testing included week long waits for results, the autopsy of fish, and many inconveniences making testing not very useful. This portable device tests water using porphyrins (organics) that bind with thiocyanate (excretions from fish exposed to cyanide). When bound with thiocyanates, porphyrins change color similar to how purple heme turns red when bound with oxygen making the test fairly simple to perform and interpret. This method of testing has only been used to test waters from Narragansett Bay with results of cyanide levels being 1-2 parts per billion. A prototype of this device is said to hopefully be released within the next 2 years.
In conclusion, cyanide fishing is detrimental to the fish it's used to catch, the reefs it’s used around, and the people that capture, consume and care for the captive fish. Fishermen in the Indo- Pacific won't change their ways unless we do something about it. There are relatively simple solutions to cutting back this injustice and it starts with us.
Thank you all for reading.. I've been in in the hobby since I was 13 and have loved it since the start. I can provide some references/ citations if anyone requests it (although I'm sure I've lost a couple).
