The pain
Illegal and unreported fishing by renegade fisherman is a multibillion-dollar business which has proven notoriously difficult to monitor.
A third of the world’s fisheries are overfished, which can create extinction of an important food supply! The ocean is an ecosystem that requires sustainability to survive, and we’re not treating it in a sustainable fashion.
The solution
"Global fishing watch" is a free platform that will help governments, journos, insurance companies and the public (and who else?) monitor the 35, 000 fishing vessels in real time.
Holding people accountable is an important step -
" what you can measure you can manage"
But at what cost?
An example of good use
The government of the Pacific island nation of Kiribati ( 800 sq miles, 103,000 population) used Global Fishing Watch to document how a tuna-fishing vessel had operated illegally inside the Phoenix Islands Protected Area. This resulted in a $1 million fine — a large sum for such a tiny government.
Indonesia recently sank 60 boats that it had impounded for illegally fishing in its waters, part of an aggressive campaign to assert sovereignty over one of its key resources.
What are examples of not so good use?
You can now track anything in the world from anywhere in the world. Big brother is watching you!
