Threats to Fish

The items in this section are not currently listed by level of impact, in part because the comparative level of danger from each threat varies from one location to another. For example habitat loss of pollution may pose a greater impact for places without dams or with stricter fishing law enforcement, while dams or overfishing can be the main cause of population collapse in other places.

Europe

"​With hydropower, overfishing, climate change and pollution on the rise, populations of migratory freshwater fish species have plummeted globally by 76% on average since 1970, including a 93% collapse in Europe." - WWF

Poaching - The Pet Industry

Exotic species are at particularly high risk from poaching for the exotic pet industry. Since many species are difficult if not impossible to breed in captivity, a massive quantity are harvested from coral reefs and other delicate habitats each year. Poachers often use cyanide to "knock out" the fish, however many fish in the area die from contact with this poison, which also hurts the surrounding reef. A shockingly high percentage of pet shop fish in the USA test positive for cyanide, which indicates their illegal's origins.

Climate Change

Fossil Fuels

Seabed exploration, drilling, leaky infrastructure, and massive oil spills have historically been a very large danger to fish as well as many other ocean species. In addition to the deadly levels of noise and chemical pollution of course, fossil fuels also add to greenhouse gas load in our atmosphere, increasing climate change. As waters warm, this disrupts basic behaviors, metabolic activities, and even reduces the amount of oxygen dissolved in the water for aquatic species to breath. Some species are slowly adapting to these changes, but generally speaking, anything that can't migrate away from these dangers simply dies.

Solutions

Combat Pollution

This section doesn't yet cover all types of pollution, but we've managed to include most common types of pollution as well as ways to reduce or eliminate their impact.

Prevention

Prevention is cheaper and easier than cleaning up pollutants after they have infiltrated the environment, or worse, entered the food chain.

Tools & Apps

Oceana

New Zealand 

• Spyfish Aotearoa 🐙 🦈🐟 🐠 # 📷 "Our team deploys baited underwater cameras in marine reserves all over Aotearoa New Zealand to monitor the abundance and diversity of marine life.
  
  Help us identify and count the species of fish recorded by the cameras. Your classifications will be used to determine the effectiveness of the reserves, inform marine management, and protect our taonga (treasured) species."

International

• Sea Shepherd their "sole mission is to protect and conserve the world’s oceans and marine wildlife. We work to defend all marine wildlife, from whales and dolphins, to sharks and rays, to fish and krill, without exception."

Europe

• OSPAR "is the mechanism by which 15 Governments & the EU cooperate to protect the marine environment of the North-East Atlantic.
  
  OSPAR started in 1972 with the Oslo Convention against dumping and was broadened to cover land-based sources of marine pollution and the offshore industry by the Paris Convention of 1974. These two conventions were unified, up-dated and extended by the 1992 OSPAR Convention. The new annex on biodiversity and ecosystems was adopted in 1998 to cover non-polluting human activities that can adversely affect the sea.
  
  The fifteen Governments are Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Iceland, Ireland, Luxembourg, The Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland and United Kingdom.
  
  OSPAR is so named because of the original Oslo and Paris Conventions ("OS" for Oslo and "PAR" for Paris)."

North America

USA

• USGS Wetland and Aquatic Research Center "WARC conducts relevant and objective research, develops new approaches and technologies, and disseminates scientific information needed to understand, manage, conserve, and restore wetlands and other aquatic and coastal ecosystems and their associated plant and animal communities throughout the nation and the world."

Maps

International

• The Global Hydropower Tracker (Interactive) "is a worldwide dataset of hydropower facilities.
  
  The tracker catalogs hydroelectric power plants with capacities of 75 megawatts (MW) or more. It includes all facilities at this capacity threshold for operating, announced, pre-construction, under construction, and shelved units. Some data are also included for plants that are either mothballed, retired, or canceled.
  
  Projects are the fundamental level of organization for the Global Hydropower Tracker. A given project may consist of a single turbine-generator set, or multiple turbine-generator sets. When available, information about the capacity and number of turbine(s) is included. Multiple projects that are part of a collection of related power-generating infrastructure but which should be considered different plants due to distinct physical infrastructure, geographic separation, and/or other factors such as ownership or operation are linked together as a complex."

North America

USA

• Water Scarcity and Fish Imperilment Driven by Beef Production (Paper with maps)

• Who Are The Top Toxic Water Polluters in Your State? Interactive map. Scroll down for the full list, and click the arrow under the list to find your state. Some of the worst polluters are livestock related, including meat-processing plants.

Grants & Funding

North America

USA

California

• Watershed Restoration Grants