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The recent movie “The Perfect Storm” depicted a story of a swordfishing boat caught in a horrendous storm, or so everyone thought. What was the real underlying message hidden beneath these huge waves? The real-life swordfishermen who faced this ordeal were forced to fish farther out in the Atlantic because not one swordfish was to be found at the traditional fishing grounds. I’m sure you’ve noticed that the underlying message of this movie is that swordfish are in serious trouble. This, along with the boycott of swordfish by many restaurants opened my eyes to the truth about the condition of this awesome fish. Swordfish, one of the world’s favorite fish, are served in fine restaurants everywhere. Swordfish have been suffering a massive population decline over the last forty years due to heavy overfishing. I have been fishing offshore ever since I was old enough to walk and have witnessed the decline of this species first hand. Each year less and less swordfish are bought into port. In fact I have not even seen one around the docks in six years! This unstoppable decline has raised much concern for adopting a new plan management. This plan must take into account the well-being of not only the fish, but also the commercial fisherman who bring the swordfish to market. In order to save the swordfish we need to restrict certain areas and seasons to commercial fisherman thereby letting the spawning of this species go undisrupted. In the past few years, the very same people that once created a huge market for swordfish are now fighting for their protection. According to "The Boycott against Swordfish" there is debate over the ethics of purchasing a species that is currently at only 58% of the sustainable population level. "In 1998, over 700 chefs agreed to boycott serving swordfish by 2 signing the ‘Give swordfish a break’ petition" (The Boycott against Swordfish 1). This opened the eyes of millions to the depleted swordfish stocks by sending a signal to those who were simply dining out and not associated with fishing whatsoever. So what caused such a severe problem with this very profitable industry? In the past few decades tremendous pressure has been laid upon the swordfish industry due to the fish’s "succulent, fine grain, white flesh"(Michael R. Ross 231). In the early 1970’s commercial pressure came down hard on the swordfish, with many restaurants realizing that this fish was a hit. But, it was this huge market that influenced commercial fisherman to develop tactics such as longlining which further devastated the population. Longlining, which is a method that utilizes a line of hooks that are up to 40 miles long, has accounted a majority of the damages to swordfish. Carl Safina agrees, "Fishing pressure is so crushingly intense, that survival of young through adulthood is down to 3 percent what it once was. The adult population is in a veritable free fall, down 80 percent since the 1970’s.” He adds, “At this rate, the fisheries service fears commercial extinction of swordfish within ten years.” (88). But, before longlining, came harpooning. According to Safina, referring to harpooning off Martha’s Vineyard, "Top captains used to catch between thirty and forty swordfish a day.
Approximate Word count = 2081
Approximate Pages = 8.3
(250 words per page double spaced)
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