Trashing Your Livelihood

The United Nations estimates that there are 46,000 pieces of plastic debris for every square mile of the world’s oceans. Marine debris is more than just an environmental problem; it can destroy a commercial fisherman.
This video looks at eight ways that marine debris, including lost and discarded fishing gear, can wreak havoc on commercial fisheries and the fishermen that whose livelihoods depend on them. Issues explored include marine debris’ relationship to:
• Curtailment of fishing due to species depletion;
• Diminished seafood sales due to negative consumer
perceptions
• Negative impacts on seafood consumers’ health;
• Invasive species and their effects
• Expensive vessel repairs and lost fishing time;
• Fines, penalties, and legal hassles for fishermen;
• An ugly, degraded environment in which to work;
• Costs to taxpayers for cleanup.
This film also outlines ways that commercial fishermen and everyone can make a difference by reducing the amount of new debris that makes its way into our oceans and by helping to clean up the debris already threatening commercial fishermen’s livelihoods.
This video was prepared by the Alaska Marine Safety Education Association under contract to the Marine Conservation Alliance Foundation, with funding from award NA064630024 from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, U.S. Department of Commerce, and with additional assistance from the University of Alaska Sea Grant Marine Advisory Program and the United States Coast Guard. © 2008