Oceans

Alaska Pollock: Feeding Fish-Stick Nation

Alaska Pollock: Feeding Fish-Stick Nation No place off America’s coasts produces as much fish as the Bering Sea. And no fish is more plentiful in America’s harvests than the Alaska pollock. Pollock is deep-fried and sold as “Fillet-O-Fish” sandwiches at McDonald’s or frozen fish sticks. It is minced into a bland white substance and sold …

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Essential Coral Gardens: North Pacific council rejects plan to protect coral and sponge, though it meant little reduction in commercial fishing

Essential Coral Gardens: North Pacific council rejects plan to protect coral and sponge, though it meant little reduction in commercial fishing Every year, from Baja California to the Bering Sea, 1 million pounds of coral are scraped up in the pursuit of the groundfish that populate the cold, deep waters of the Continental Shelf. Commercial …

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Fixing our failed fisheries

Fixing our failed fisheries Naked self-interest, ignoring warning signs of declining species, knowingly permitting overfishing, and looking the other way when accidental catches – or bycatch – severely deplete vulnerable species such as sea turtles: these are just a few of the features of the failing management system that governs the precious resources of the …

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Is it Fresh? …and other important questions to ask at the seafood market

Is it Fresh? …and other important questions to ask at the seafood market by Elizabeth Grossman At low tide in Sitka, Alaska, I watched bald eagles, ravens and small shore birds dive for fish and feast on sea creatures along the beach. That evening friends shared Dungeness crab they’d just hauled out of the bay, …

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It’s All About the Ecosystem: Experts Urge Pacific Fisheries Council to Take a More Holistic Approach

It’s All About the Ecosystem: Experts Urge Pacific Fisheries Council to Take a More Holistic Approach The catchphrase for President Clinton’s 1992 campaign framed the main issue and probably helped win the election: “It’s the economy, stupid.” Today, in the California Current, it’s all about the ecosystem, or more accurately, it’s all about the neglect …

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No Refuge Strictly speaking, our National Marine Sanctuaries aren’t truly “sanctuaries” at all

No Refuge Strictly speaking, our National Marine Sanctuaries aren’t truly “sanctuaries” at all When Congress passed legislation creating National Marine Sanctuaries in 1972, it recognized that oceans are ecosystems, but lack the same kind of protection as special areas on land. “This Nation historically has recognized the importance of protecting special areas of its public …

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One of the World’s Richest Ecosystems, the California Current Carries 10 Times ss Much Water as the Amazon

One of the World’s Richest Ecosystems, the California Current Carries 10 Times ss Much Water as the Amazon By Paul Koberstein The California Current spins clockwise along the West Coast, a cog in the enormous North Pacific Gyre.  The California Current is said to be as rich if not richer with marine life than any …

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