Introduction
21
The last resource
The amount of food locked away in the world’s oceans is still a
matter of dispute but the world sh—catch is one of the few sources
of food supplies of which have managed to increase consistently.
Even so, there is tremendous wastage and new ways of preserving
and processing sh vie for importance with new approaches to
catching them. And yet, even as congratulations for tapping this
ocean resource rise in the throat, one hears of over—shing—sheries
destroyed by over—exploitation. Such failures should stand as a
warning. With adequate management, sh stocks can maintain a
steady output of food but left to the uncontrolled exploitation by all
the world’s shing vessels, Wholesale destruction could ensue (Ch. I).
Perhaps farming the seas will come to the rescue of hard—pressed
traditional sheries. Scientists have tried since the late nineteenth
century to rear marine sh as they do freshwater ones such as trout
and carp. Until recently they have failed, but now certain sh like
the plaice and sole can be hatched and reared in large numbers.
Already the rst ‘seed sh’ have been fattened in feneed—o' marine
elds and intensive growth tanks. Shellsh, along With other
commercially attractive marine animals such as prawns, are also
being reared on an unprecedented scale. Nor are farming activities
restricted to animals; the Polynesians learned long ago to tend their
marine gardens; nowadays food and medical companies are usurping
this pastoral role to obtain food additives and medically useful
chemicals from seaweeds (Ch. 2).
Apart from supplies of food, the oceans can provide another vital
commodity—fresh water. Scientists and engineers in many countries
have set themselves the problem of taking the Ancient Mariner
to
task for disclaiming a valuable source of water. Industry and private
individuals have a powerful collective thirst and as civilization
advances, so the demand for fresh water grows. Some fresh water is
already obtained direct from the sea, but the costs of removing the
salts contaminating it are high. However, practically every month or
so brings some new development. So much so that some countries
already pushing their national water supplies to the limit face the
quandary of whether to build desalting plant now or risk further
damage to their strained water resources in hope of beneting from
“
further technological advances (Ch. 3).
_
Several chemicals contained in sea—water are extracted on a
commercial scale. The difculty at present is that, apart from common
21
The last resource
The amount of food locked away in the world’s oceans is still a
matter of dispute but the world sh—catch is one of the few sources
of food supplies of which have managed to increase consistently.
Even so, there is tremendous wastage and new ways of preserving
and processing sh vie for importance with new approaches to
catching them. And yet, even as congratulations for tapping this
ocean resource rise in the throat, one hears of over—shing—sheries
destroyed by over—exploitation. Such failures should stand as a
warning. With adequate management, sh stocks can maintain a
steady output of food but left to the uncontrolled exploitation by all
the world’s shing vessels, Wholesale destruction could ensue (Ch. I).
Perhaps farming the seas will come to the rescue of hard—pressed
traditional sheries. Scientists have tried since the late nineteenth
century to rear marine sh as they do freshwater ones such as trout
and carp. Until recently they have failed, but now certain sh like
the plaice and sole can be hatched and reared in large numbers.
Already the rst ‘seed sh’ have been fattened in feneed—o' marine
elds and intensive growth tanks. Shellsh, along With other
commercially attractive marine animals such as prawns, are also
being reared on an unprecedented scale. Nor are farming activities
restricted to animals; the Polynesians learned long ago to tend their
marine gardens; nowadays food and medical companies are usurping
this pastoral role to obtain food additives and medically useful
chemicals from seaweeds (Ch. 2).
Apart from supplies of food, the oceans can provide another vital
commodity—fresh water. Scientists and engineers in many countries
have set themselves the problem of taking the Ancient Mariner
to
task for disclaiming a valuable source of water. Industry and private
individuals have a powerful collective thirst and as civilization
advances, so the demand for fresh water grows. Some fresh water is
already obtained direct from the sea, but the costs of removing the
salts contaminating it are high. However, practically every month or
so brings some new development. So much so that some countries
already pushing their national water supplies to the limit face the
quandary of whether to build desalting plant now or risk further
damage to their strained water resources in hope of beneting from
“
further technological advances (Ch. 3).
_
Several chemicals contained in sea—water are extracted on a
commercial scale. The difculty at present is that, apart from common