Allowing fish stocks to recover would boost industry by billions a year, UN says

Agence France-Presse
January 26, 2012
Vancouver Sun

The worldwide fishing industry could benefit from an annual $50-billion boost if stocks were allowed time to recover, the UN said Wednesday.

Already 32 per cent of the world's fish stocks have been depleted by years of overfishing and poor coastal management, according to a UN Environment Program report released in the Philippine capital Manila.

"The potential economic gain from reducing fishing capacity to an optimal and restoring fish stocks is in the order of $50 billion per annum," a summary of the UN report said, with-out giving details on how the figure was reached.

The report said overfishing, pollution from land-based farming and industry, and the destruction of habitat, including coral reefs and man-groves, are all having an effect on fish stocks. This is directly affecting the 540 million people around the world who are dependent on the fishing industry, experts said.

Read the full storty in the Vancouver Sun.