Here. . . Fishy, Fishy!


Over the summer, I was lucky enough to spend a lot of time paddleboarding at Sylvan Lake. One of my favorite spots is on the far end of the lake, where you can look into the clear, deep water and see the shimmering bodies of the fish glistening in the sun. It is such a peaceful feeling to be that close to nature. Between over-fishing and pollution, many species are threatened. While pollution may be hard to control, what can we do about over-fishing?


When a fishery is managed using maximum sustainable yield policies, the goal is to maintain the population by removing the fish that are being added to the population, thus ensuring sustainable population growth, without the threat of overgrowth.

It was not uncommon to see a large number of people dotting the shoreline of the lake or relaxing in their boats, fishing poles in hand, each time I visited. This summer, that is not surprising. Next spring, they will be draining the lake to reconstruct the dam, so bag limits were lifted at the end of the summer, much to the delight of the local enthusiasts. But it raised questions in my mind as to how Sylvan Lake keeps the fish stocked with such an abundance of fishing tourism. Even though the park rangers do an excellent job of monitoring licenses and limits, I can't imagine the task to be quite as easy at a large lake, where coves and beaches may lie beyond the line of sight, and are inaccessible by vehicle.

On many common properties, overuse is a large problem. Because of the shortness of the season and the abundance of users ,the resources that are considered renewable, such as fish, wild animals, and plants, aren't given enough time to maintain their population due to the abundance of hunting and gathering. Because of the fluctuation in sustainable yield, permits allow only a certain number of plants and animals to be harvested.

In my opinion, the most effective method to control overuse is by issuing individual transferable quotas (ITQ's). An ITQ allows each individual fisher a specific amount of fish they can catch, which would allow for the stock to remain at maximum sustainable yield. The fisher can then choose to fill their quota, or sell their ITQ shares to another, or buy additional shares. Although monitoring this method is somewhat challenging, it is much more effective at maintaining stock than total allowable catch limits.

The problem of over-fishing will continue to burden our lakes, rivers, and oceans, but the best way to control this environmental issue, as with most environmental issues, is access to education. Although it isn't possible control greedy people who have no consideration for anyone but themselves, it is possible to believe in karma, and keep our own harvest in check.

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