Maximum Sustainable Yield

Background

A sixth of the Earth's population depends on the sea for over a third of its animal protein (the world average is 16 percent). Fishing and processing employs 200 million people worldwide. The current annual catch is about 88 million U.S. tons, or 80 million metric tons. The total is down from 1989, the peak year with 86 million metric tons. The 1989 catch culminated a 50-year process in which the catch rose by a factor of four. However, the world total conceals the disparities in different parts of the world—the Indian Ocean catch continues to rise, while 13 of the 15 major areas have shown declines (the Atlantic cod catch is down by a factor of almost three since 1970.)

In November 1992, a collection of scientists warned that nature and humanity were on a collision course because of the damage human activity was doing to the environment and resources. They warned that unless change occurred, humanity risked creating a world incapable of sustaining life as we know it. They said that Earth had too many people. The scientists warned of atmospheric damage from ozone depletion, air pollution, and acid rain. They noted critical depletion of the water supply, putting world food production at risk. They cited soil depletion that degraded land and cut food production. They decried the loss of tropical rainforests. They also talked of the destruction of ocean life, particularly the world's supply of food fish. They noted that the world's farmers, industrialists and urbanités were sending pollutants into the oceans, that fishermen were taking more than the maximum sustainable yield, and some fisheries were showing signs of collapsing. They calculated that by 2100, upwards of one-third of all extant species might disappear. Among other steps to prevent the disaster, humanity needed to find alternatives to fossil fuels, become more efficient in using nonrenewable [Page 629]resources, and manage critical resources more effectively. The developed world had to help the undeveloped world to make these changes.

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