From *Eco-Eating at www.brook.com/veg*:

. 8. *Fish & Other Sea Animals*:

"Seafood is simply a socially acceptable form of bush meat", according
to Paul Watson, a founder of Greenpeace <http://www.greenpeace.org/>
and the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society <http://www.seashepherd.org/.
"We condemn Africans for hunting monkeys and mammalian and bird
species from the jungle, yet the developed world thinks nothing of
hauling in magnificent wild creatures like swordfish, tuna, halibut, shark
and salmon for our meals. The fact is that the global slaughter of marine
wildlife is simply the largest massacre of wildlife on the planet."

Commercial fishing is causing the *collapse of the world's fisheries*,
having likely passed "peak fish"
<http://www.indybay.org/news/2006/02/1804015.php>, destroying
marine ecosystems, heavily polluting our oceans, and, along with climate
change, contributing to "dead zones"
<http://www.commondreams.org/headlines06/1019-09.htm>. In effect,
we are clear cutting our underwater rainforests, including the coral reefs
<http://oceanworld.tamu.edu/students/coral/> and mangroves
<http://www.zmag.org/sustainers/content/2005-01/10sharma.cfm> that
support a rich array of biodiversity, as well as providing coastal
protection, leading to the endangerment and extinction of many species
employing "the factory trawler's wet version of a scorched-earth policy"
(Curtis White). To catch wild fish, entire schools of fish
<http://archive.greenpeace.org/comms/fish/amaze.html> are netted
<http://www.botany.uwc.ac.za/Envfacts/facts/gill_nets.htm> along with
turtles <http://www.seaturtles.org/>, dolphins
<http://www.greenpeace.org.uk/oceans/media/pressrelease.cfm?ucidparam=20040120105542>,
whales
<http://www.eurocbc.org/bycatch_death_toll_may_exceed_1000_cetaceans_daily_15june2003page1156.html>,
sharks
<http://sacoast.uwc.ac.za/education/resources/envirofacts/sharks.htm>,
seals <http://nmml.afsc.noaa.gov/education/pinnipeds/seals.htm>,
birds <http://www.abcbirds.org/policy/fishing_nets.htm>, and others
as "by-catch", or "collateral damage", leaving a destructive and deadly
wake. In fact, over 1/5 (about 22%) of fish caught by U.S. commercial
operations is "by-catch"
<http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/11/30/AR2005113001948.html>
(fish that is caught, but discarded), topping more than a million tons
per year.

Aquaculture, or the factory farming of fish
<http://factoryfarming.org/fish.htm>, is also massively eco-destructive,
often leading to over-fishing of wild fish for feed, de-oxygenation of
the water, disease amongst fish and other marine animals, and the
(over)use of antibiotics, hormones, chemicals, and genetically-engineered
additives.

Further, underwater "forests" of coral reefs
<http://oceanworld.tamu.edu/students/coral/> and mangroves
<http://www.zmag.org/sustainers/content/2005-01/10sharma.cfm> are
being decimated by "rape-and-run" shrimp farming (exploiting and
polluting coastal communities for 2 to 5 years before abandoning them),
commercial overfishing and trawling, inefficient industrial shipping, and
other fish-related mega-activities with no regard for the natural world,
whether underwater or above.

Fish
<http://www.earthsave.bc.ca/materials/articles/articles/ethics/fish.html>
often contain mercury
<http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0FDE/is_2_22/ai_100961707>,
arsenic <http://www.lenntech.com/Periodic-chart-elements/As-en.htm>,
lead <http://www.lead.org.au/lanv7n1/L71-13.html>,
cadmium <http://www.e-b-i.net/ebi/contaminants/cadmium.html> as well
as toxic POPs <http://www.chem.unep.ch/pops/>, including PCBs
<http://www.idph.state.il.us/envhealth/factsheets/polychlorinatedbiphenyls.htm>,
DDT <http://www.the-piedpiper.co.uk/th13%28l%29.htm>, and dioxin
<http://www.european-vegetarian.org/evu/english/news/news974/dioxin.html>,
which can't be removed from the fish <http://www.nofishing.net/> and
which bio-accumulate
<http://drake.marin.k12.ca.us/stuwork/rockwater/hev%20met/harmtopeople.html>
in consumers <http://www.nofishing.net/health.html>. "A major health
hazard from eating fish flesh comes from humans causing polluted aquatic
environments. Fish are repositories for the industrial and municipal
wastes and the agricultural chemicals flushed into the world's waters",
says Richard Schwartz, Ph.D. "Mercury, especially high in tuna and
swordfish, can cause brain damage, especially in growing children. PCBs,
dioxin, and pesticides (such as DDT) have been linked to cancers,
nervous system disorders, fetal damage, and many other health problems.
Removing fish from your meals eliminates half of all mercury exposure
and reduces one's intake of other toxins." According to Dr. Steve Patch,
co-director of the Environmental Quality Institute, University of North
Carolina-Asheville, "We saw a direct relationship between people's
mercury levels and the amount of. fish people consumed".

While fish often are said to contain high levels of protein and healthy
fats and fatty acids (especially for the fish), this may not be the case
and, in any event, there are easy alternatives for these nutrients,
including olives, flax, and hemp seeds. Additionally, fish, as with
other animals, contain saturated fat and cholesterol, which are
unhealthy. Further, fish do not contain any fiber, vitamins,
anti-oxidants, or phytonutrients, all of which are exclusive to plant
foods. A scientific review
<http://www.fishinghurts.com/feat-omega3.asp?int=weekly_enews> of
studies about fish has shown that it is not necessarily a healthy food
for humans. William Harris, M.D. <http://www.vegsource.com/harris>
determined that fish have seven times the protein that humans should
intake and that fish protein contains high amounts of the amino acids
methionine and cystine, which lead to calcium depletion and can cause
osteoporosis.

It is understandable why some people go into denial, but it should be
clear that fish <http://www.fishinghurts.com/   as with /all/ other
animals-feel pain
<http://ananimalfriendlylife.com/2006/10/that-fish-you-caught-was-in-pain.html>,
a phenomenon in animals needed for survival and success. Being
caught on a hook is "like dentistry without novocaine, drilling into
exposed nerves" (Dr. Tom Hopkins). Being pulled /out/ of the water
is like a person being held /under/ water.

/Vegetarians protect fish, other marine animals, and the incredible
oceans they live in./

"Commercial fishing, aquaculture, and angling are environmentally
catastrophic..

*If you eat fish, you are supporting an industry that plunders our
oceans* with no regard for the horrible pain and suffering that fish and
other marine animals endure

or for the diverse ocean ecosystem that is imperative to the survival of
all underwater life."

FishingHurts.com <http://fishinghurts.com/EnvironmentalConcerns.asp>