Fish. Good for you and there are plenty, right? Not so much.
First off, fish is not so good for you anymore. While it is true that fish are high in Omega 3 fatty acids and other nutritional necessities, it has become quite apparent that the amount of mercury in our waters has made fish a less healthy addition to our diets than it once was. Here is the scoop: Mercury is contained in trace amounts in all fish and seafoods. So far, the health benefits outweigh the risks with eating fish, but there are definitely fish to avoid-especially for mothers to be and those who are breast feeding. Older, bigger, predatory fish are higher in mercury and should generally be avoided. From the EPA, we have 3 guidelines:
- Do not eat Shark, Swordfish, King Mackerel, or Tilefish because they contain high levels of mercury.
- Eat up to 12 ounces (2 average meals) a week of a variety of fish and shellfish that are lower in mercury.
- Five of the most commonly eaten fish that are low in mercury are shrimp, canned light tuna, salmon, pollock, and catfish.
- Another commonly eaten fish, albacore (“white”) tuna has more mercury than canned light tuna. So, when choosing your two meals of fish and shellfish, you may eat up to 6 ounces (one average meal) of albacore tuna per week.
- Check local advisories about the safety of fish caught by family and friends in your local lakes, rivers, and coastal areas. If no advice is available, eat up to 6 ounces (one average meal) per week of fish you catch from local waters, but don’t consume any other fish during that week.
To find out what the American Heart Association has to say go to their site. So, we all know that eating red meat is not particularly good for the body, but when the EPA tells you to stick to only 2 meals of fish a week because of pollutants and heavy metals, then there is a problem. Then, you can add to that the amount of fish populations and habitats that we are eliminating due to plastics, run off and other environmental messes (ahem, BP). But pollution is not our only problem…
The next problem we have is over fishing. We have fished some 90% of the world’s largest fish out of existence (according to a study published in Nature magazine in 2003). This is not hard for me to believe. While watching a bit on TV about something, and they were talking about commercial fishing. I can’t remember the species (some tuna perhaps), but there were quotas on the amount of fish that a commercial fisherman could catch in a year. That quota was easily reached in less than a week. Not only do we consume huge amounts of fish these days, but we have made it easier to do so. Modern equipment has made fishing easier and more profitable, but this leads us to capture and consume more fish than we should. Over fishing means that we are reducing fish populations faster than they can replenish themselves. It is Shark Week on the Discovery channel and I learned that sports fishing alone has led to the decimation of many species of shark-a fish that is not even popular for eating (at least not here). If we are not careful, then we will soon eliminate all our favorite fish from the waters, and then what will we have? Well, we will likely have carp….
Two types of Asian Carp are invading much of the Great Lakes. Thanks to modern transportation, these and many other species are being introduced to regions around the world where they have never been seen before. Being out of their usual homes, they often thrive, becoming an invasive species that out competes with local fish populations and upsets the naturally balanced ecosystems. Currently in the Great Lakes, fresh water sturgeon are making a comeback from near extinction, but now are facing the invasion of the bighead and silver carp species. This is going on around the globe. Sports fishing on the Great Lakes is big business, so what will it mean to the local economy if all you can catch are carp? And will we start to see carp on the menu at the Greenhouse Tavern?
We have slowly been trying to make up for the environmental messes that we have created for our fish populations. Dams and power stations that cut off natural fish runs for salmon and the like have had to add fish ladders and fish hatcheries in order to sustain the populations of these popular fishes. Laws prohibiting fishing or establishing quotas on fish catches might help slow the destruction of some species, though it was too little, too late for many of the species of whales that are now extinct or can be counted in the tens rather than the thousands. But these efforts may all be moot, if we see a rise in the ocean temperatures by only a few degrees. Climate change has led to surges in populations of some species while it continues to wreak havoc on others. In Japan, some populations of giant Nomura jelly fish come to the surface once every decade or so. But over development and warmer waters have led to these invasions becoming more and more frequent. This equates to huge economic losses in Japan and large effects on fish populations. Climate change may be one of the issues that is affecting the Great Barrier Reef and other coral reefs throughout the world, whose destruction could lead to the decline of a huge number of fish species.
If we are not careful with our under appreciated natural resource of the oceans, then we could soon all be eating only carp.
