214
The Last Resource
the search for large catches of sh. Faced with the threat of highly
mechanized eets, smaller nations which have rich shing grounds
in their area are inevitably seeking to extend their territorial waters
to protect them. At the 1960 United Nations Conference on the Law
of the Sea, the Peruvian delegate argued that his country needs a
zoo—mile territorial sea because the exceptional shing resources
adjacent to Peru’s coasts merely compensate for the aridness and
low food production potential of the country’s land area.
The Peruvian anchovy catch reached its maximum sustainable
level by the late 1960s but many traditional sheries, particularly
those fairly close to Western Europe, were by then overfished. This
subtle balance between the catch that can be taken without sig—
nicantly affecting fish stocks and the catch which seriously depletes
them is likely to become the basis of some heated arguments in the
future. As was explained in Chapter I agreements on shery regula—
tion and management have led to improved yields of sh in the past,
but generally few countries have been involved. What will happen
with more nations chasing after marine protein is not over—clear.
Only the results of a failure to agree are predictable, with important
fish stocks, like the whale before them, being pushed to the brink of
extinction.
Although water pollution has not yet reached a stage where it
threatens off—shore sheries, a time can be envisaged when the
biological yield of the oceans is limited by this unpleasant by_
product of modern technology rather than by direct exploitation.
The discovery some years ago of DDT in the tissues of Antarctic
penguins provided a startling example of how persistent some forms
of pollution can be. The insecticide was apparently washed off the
land and found its way via plankton and then fish to the penguin.
Not all pollution is accidental: the oceans have become a dumping
ground for industrial and radio—active wastes, sewage and an assort—
ment of rubbish. And developments on and around the sea—bed
could add further to these pollutants. Apart from the waste ejected
at sites of sea—bed mining, minerals and nutrients stirred up by the
work could conceivably lead to poisonous planktonic ‘blooms’ or
even a gross disturbance of the marine food web including the sh.
From the point of view of the fisheries alone, numerous areas of
controversy and disagreement can be seen. Deep—sea minerals may
be the ‘glamour’ subjects of ‘who—has—what’ controversies, but many
of the battles needed to shape international policies concerning
The Last Resource
the search for large catches of sh. Faced with the threat of highly
mechanized eets, smaller nations which have rich shing grounds
in their area are inevitably seeking to extend their territorial waters
to protect them. At the 1960 United Nations Conference on the Law
of the Sea, the Peruvian delegate argued that his country needs a
zoo—mile territorial sea because the exceptional shing resources
adjacent to Peru’s coasts merely compensate for the aridness and
low food production potential of the country’s land area.
The Peruvian anchovy catch reached its maximum sustainable
level by the late 1960s but many traditional sheries, particularly
those fairly close to Western Europe, were by then overfished. This
subtle balance between the catch that can be taken without sig—
nicantly affecting fish stocks and the catch which seriously depletes
them is likely to become the basis of some heated arguments in the
future. As was explained in Chapter I agreements on shery regula—
tion and management have led to improved yields of sh in the past,
but generally few countries have been involved. What will happen
with more nations chasing after marine protein is not over—clear.
Only the results of a failure to agree are predictable, with important
fish stocks, like the whale before them, being pushed to the brink of
extinction.
Although water pollution has not yet reached a stage where it
threatens off—shore sheries, a time can be envisaged when the
biological yield of the oceans is limited by this unpleasant by_
product of modern technology rather than by direct exploitation.
The discovery some years ago of DDT in the tissues of Antarctic
penguins provided a startling example of how persistent some forms
of pollution can be. The insecticide was apparently washed off the
land and found its way via plankton and then fish to the penguin.
Not all pollution is accidental: the oceans have become a dumping
ground for industrial and radio—active wastes, sewage and an assort—
ment of rubbish. And developments on and around the sea—bed
could add further to these pollutants. Apart from the waste ejected
at sites of sea—bed mining, minerals and nutrients stirred up by the
work could conceivably lead to poisonous planktonic ‘blooms’ or
even a gross disturbance of the marine food web including the sh.
From the point of view of the fisheries alone, numerous areas of
controversy and disagreement can be seen. Deep—sea minerals may
be the ‘glamour’ subjects of ‘who—has—what’ controversies, but many
of the battles needed to shape international policies concerning