fisheries

Fish buffered from recent marine heatwaves, showing there’s still time to act on climate change

Fish were surprisingly resilient to marine heatwaves before 2019, highlighting the need to keep seas from warming further, according to new research

Aug 30, 2023

Seafood farming’s growth rate has already peaked, and now it’s in decline

Dr. Rashid Sumaila and Dr. Muhammed Oyinlola discuss why we can’t rely on just farmed seafood for our fishy needs.

Nov 14, 2022

B.C. ocean’s worth of almost $5 billion to GDP likely an underestimate

British Columbia’s ocean contributed almost $5 billion to provincial gross domestic product in 2015, a sum that is likely an underestimate, a new UBC study has found.

Aug 9, 2022

Scientists urge WTO to ban subsidies that promote overfishing

Scientists are calling on the World Trade Organization (WTO) to ban subsidies that can cause overfishing at its meeting next week.

Jun 6, 2022

Sockeye salmon in Salmon Arm, B.C Credit: Marco Tjokro /Unsplash

Q&A: Rebuilding depleted Canadian fish stocks is good business

Fish populations in Canada need to be urgently rebuilt, but short-term socio-economic concerns – such as the impacts of fisheries closures on local fishers – often slow down or even prevent the process of rebuilding stocks.

Aug 24, 2020

Billions lost as illicit fisheries trade hurting nations who can afford it least

More than eight million to 14 million tonnes of unreported fish catches are traded illicitly every year, costing the legitimate market between $9 billion and $17 billion in trade each year, according to new UBC research.

Feb 26, 2020

Achieving Paris climate target could net additional billions in fisheries revenue

Achieving the Paris Agreement global warming target could protect millions of tonnes in annual worldwide fisheries catch, as well as billions of dollars of annual revenues for fishers, workers’ income and household seafood expenditures, according to new research from the University of British Columbia.

Feb 27, 2019

Subsidies promote overfishing and hurt small-scale fishers worldwide

Large-scale fisheries receive about four times more subsidies than their small-scale counterparts, with up to 60 per cent of those subsidies promoting overfishing.

Jun 1, 2017

Fish evolve by playing it safe

New research supports the creation of more marine reserves in the world’s oceans because, the authors say, fish can evolve to be more cautious and stay away from fishing nets.

Mar 21, 2017

High seas fisheries management could recoup losses due to climate change

Closing the high seas to fishing could increase fish catches in coastal waters by 10 per cent, helping people cope with the expected losses of fish due to climate change.

Aug 30, 2016

New data on reported and unreported marine catches now available online

Researchers with UBC’s Sea Around Us project have launched a new open-source web platform that provides the first comprehensive coverage of both reported and unreported fish.

May 27, 2015

Researchers identify nine steps to save waterways

Nine guiding principles for clean water and sustainable fisheries from a team of Canadian biologists.

Jan 31, 2014

Sharks worth more in the ocean than on the menu

Sharks are worth more in the ocean than in a bowl of soup, according to researchers from the University of British Columbia.

May 30, 2013

“Fish thermometer” reveals long-standing, global impact of climate change

Climate change has been impacting global fisheries for the past four decades by driving species towards cooler, deeper waters, according to University of British Columbia scientists.

May 15, 2013

‘Fish thermometer’ reveals long-standing, global impact of climate change

Climate change has been impacting global fisheries for the past four decades…

May 15, 2013

Expedition team releases photographs of threatened double-barrier reef

A rare double-barrier reef in the Philippines is facing grave threats and urgently needs increased protection, according to new photographic evidence released today by a team of marine conservationists and photographers organized by Project Seahorse, a partnership of the University of British Columbia and the Zoological Society of London.

Apr 15, 2013

UBC fisheries scientists recognized in Smithsonian Magazine's Top Ten Ocean Stories of 2012

UBC fisheries scientists were involved in two of the ten best ocean stories of 2012 by Smithsonian magazine’s Surprising Science blog.

Dec 20, 2012

Fish getting smaller as the oceans warm: UBC research

Changes in ocean and climate systems could lead to smaller fish, according to a new study led by fisheries scientists at the University of British Columbia.

Sep 30, 2012

Global ocean health gets passing grade: UBC researchers

The health of the world’s oceans received a score of 60 out of 100 from a team of international scientists, including fisheries researchers at the University of British Columbia.

Aug 15, 2012

The EU underpays Madagascar for access to fish: UBC research

Unfair and exploitative political agreements allow Europeans to eat fish from the plates of developing countries, according to a study led by University of British Columbia researchers.

Jul 3, 2012