These are regions of the world known for fishing industry.
The map below show the world’s major fishing grounds.
It is also known as North-East
Atlantic. It constitutes Barents Sea, Iceland, the North Sea and the Biscay bay.
Fishing nations in this region are Russia, United Kingdom, Germany, France and
Iceland whose the following are important fishing ports include Bergen
(Norway), Boulogne (France), Hull, Devon, Cornwall (the UK), Grimsby, Aberdeen.
Norway and Iceland are dependent on
fishing industry for their economy because they have poor soils for
agriculture.
The main catch are the cod, haddock
and herring. Modern equipment is used
in the region.
The map below shows North-East
Atlantic fishing ground
It extends from Cape Cod to Newfoundland, off the coast
of Canada.
This fishing ground is influenced by the following
factors:
i.
It has an indented coast with good harbours
ii.
It has poor soils which have compelled people to
turn to fishing to earn their living.
iii.
It is a meeting point of two contrast ocean
currents, North Atlantic drift (warm) and Labrador (cold) which influence the
rapid growth of plankton
Important ports in this region are Halifax, St John’s and Lunenburg. The
catch include cod, haddock and sardines
The map below shows North-West Atlantic fishing ground
It extends from California to Alaska
The main catch are the halibut, cod, herring and salmon (the important catch).
d.
North-East
Asia or North-Western Pacific
Has similar conditions to East Canada
fishing ground influenced by the meeting of warm Kuro Siwo and cold Oya Siwo
currents.
Japan is the leading fishing nation in the region due to
the following factors:
i.
Abundance of fish around Japanese waters
ii.
Fishing industry is receiving more attention than
agricultural industry which is greatly pressured by high population
Other fishing
nations are Russia and China The main catch include the following: cod, halibut, herring, salmon, sardine, tuna,
mackerel, garoup, carp, mullet, prawn,
lobster, crab and cuttlefish.
The map below
shows North East Asia fishing ground
e.
Peru
It is located along the coast of Peru.
It is influenced by the cold Humboldt or Peruvian ocean
current which operates in tropical region. The main catch is anchovy and the
main fishing port is Chimbote.
The map below shows Peru fishing ground
a. Physical
factors
i.
The availability of plankton – plankton is the
food for fish. As such the fishing grounds rich in the plankton.
ii.
The fishing grounds have indented coasts which
for natural harbours of which many become fishing ports such Chimbote,
Boulogne, Hull and Aberdeen.
iii.
The lands are too mountainous or have poor soils
for agriculture. As such fishing is significant alternative for livelihood.
b. Human
/ economic factors
The regions have large populations which provide market for
fish.
Types of fish
There are two main types of fish
namely pelagic and demersal fish
a. Pelagic
fish
These fish breed near to the water
surface such as herring, mackeral, menhaden,
anchovies, pilchard and tuna. They
are caught using drift and seine nets.
b. Demersal
fish
These fish breed and feed on the sea bed
of continental seas which include sole,
cod, haddock and halibut. They
are caught trawl nets.
Fishing methods
There are many
methods of catching fish which include the following:
a. Drift
net
These are nets which are vertically
suspended in water by using floats along the top edge and heavy objects along
the bottom edge. The fish are caught by their gills. The diagram below show diagram
of the drift nets. It is used to catch pelagic fish
b. Seine
net
The nets are similar to drift nets. They
are dragged near the shoal of fish by either fishing boat, fishers or two
fishing boats. It is suitable for catching pelagic fish
c. Trawl
net
It is a conical shaped net with an
opening at the base which is kept in status quo by a rigid structure. It is
dragged near the shoal of fish by fishing boats called trawlers. It is suitable
for catching demersal fish. The diagram below show the trawl nets.
d. Fishing
lines
This method entails lines as long as
1 to 2 kilometers to which hundreds of baited hooks are attached. The lines are
either trailed by fishing vessels if long or individual fishers if they are
much shorter.
e. Fishing
traps
These include baskets (mono) for
catching fish in shallow coastal waters. They contain baits and left for one or
two days in water before they are pulled out.
They are convenient for catching lobster, crab and crayfish
Importance of fishing industry
a. Provision
of food. Populations in some countries such as Japan, China, Norway and others depend
on fish for food.
b. Fishing
contributes to the economy of some countries such as Iceland and Norway
c. Fishing
industry provides employment to populations
Problems facing fishing industry
The following
are some of the problems facing fishing industry in the world
a. Pollution:
the fishing are continually becoming polluted by effluent that emanate from
factories, oil spills which resulting into depletion of fish species
b. Overfishing:
fish species are dwindling because the catch is far greater than the fish
replenishment. As such it is referred to as robber
fishing industry.
c. Destruction
of the fishing grounds.
Possible solutions to problems facing
fishing industry
a. Pollution
control: the poisonous and harmful chemicals must be removed before they are
disposed into the water bodies
b. International
laws and agreements aimed to prevent overfishing. These include setting limits
of fish for nations to catch in a given period.
c. Introduction
of fish farming in order to replenish the fish caught.
d. Enforcing
the use of nets whose mesh prevents catching young fish
e. Restocking
overfished waters
f. Awareness
campaigns on the bad effects of misusing fish resources
Other resources from the sea
The resources
from the sea include: food (prawns and shells), salt, fresh water, metals, sand
and gravel, oil and natural gas.
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