Fishing

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Fishing

COMMERCIAL FISHING

Commercial fishing is a worldwide enterprise that involves the capture of marine and freshwater fish and shellfish and their preparation for market.
Fishing equipment ranges from small boats whose nets are cast and hauled in by hand to factory ships equipped with the most advanced technologies for finding, harvesting, and preparing huge amounts of fish. These large catches are very costly, however, not only in the price of their equipment and fuel, but also in the depletion of fishery resources their use brings about.

The major portion of the total fish harvest consists of few fish species, which are divided into two primary groups. Pelagic species - those which live in the near-surface layers of the oceans, this include several species of herring, tuna, salmon, anchovies, pilchard, sardines, menhaden, and mackerel. Demersal species - fish that live in the near-bottom layers of the ocean, this includes cod, sole, halibut, haddock, hake, and flounder. Large catches are also made of a group of fish classed commercially as SHELLFISH - shrimp, lobster, scallops, oysters, clams, crabs, mussels, and squid. WHALING was once a major part of the fishing industry. Overfishing has endangered many whale numbers, however, and the field has lessened in importance.

Almost all large pelagic and demersal fish catches are made over or near the continental shelf, the underwater plateau around the continents and large islands. In these waters temperatures, water depths, and the currents that influence the amounts of available food create an environment that is highly favourable to the existence of large schools of fish.

The animals living in and on the bottom of the continental shelf serve as additional food sources for demersal fish. Also, most species spawn on continental shelves, and the main nursery grounds of many species are also in coastal regions. The main fishing grounds are located on the wider continental shelves of the mid and high latitudes. The single most important area is the
North Pacific, where as much as one-quarter of the world's fish catch is taken.

THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE FISHING INDUSTRY

Prehistoric people were hunters and food collectors, and they found much of their food in lakes, rivers, and shallow ...

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...nd to prepare recovery plans when they have decided that overfishing is depleting stocks. In addition, the councils have granted permits to foreign countries to harvest specified quantities of certain fish species in return for a fee.
Countries that have fished under US license included Japan, South Korea, the former USSR, and Poland. In their desire to maintain the prosperity of the fleets within their regions, however, the councils have not been harsh in their recognition of depleted stocks, the quotas they set, or their preparations for stock recoveries. In 1994, however, the New England Fisheries Management Council began a process that will lead to closing commercial fishing in the Georges Bank for a number of years.

Fishing in international waters has also proved difficult to control.
While it is believed, for example, that most nations have obeyed the UN moratorium on drift-net fishing, monitoring compliance remains an unsolved problem. The US Navy's Sound Surveillance System, a 48,000-km network of undersea cable, is capable of tracking drift-net operations, but budget considerations may eventually force the sound surveillance system shutdown.

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