There was further coverage of The End of the Line last week - both reviews of the film and related conservation news stories.
The new study by Boris Worm and Ray Hilborn, who both appear in the film, that showed that fish stocks in certain areas had recovered slightly due to conservation measures was widely covered. The impact of the film was included in a number of these reports.
Fork in the Road, the food blog from Village Voice website in New York, highlighted the study, published in Science, saying there was good news and bad news. The bad news is still pretty bad . . . 63% of assessed fish stocks worldwide still require rebuilding.”
Gloucester Times also covers the story, referencing the film, it says: “Management efforts . . . have been effective in reversing declines caused by chronic overfishing.
“The report . . . is no cause for celebration or let-up in the recovery programs, even in the most advanced systems.”
Writing in Salon, Katharine Mieszkowski discusses the current efforts to save bluefin tuna, mentioning the part the film has played in raising the profile of the issue. However, it is referred to as ‘the muckracking documentary, The End of the Line’.
Another issue connected with the film that was in the news was the question of what advice the UK government will issue on how much fish we should be eating.
MPs from the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Committee said in a statement that the government “should consider the wisdom of continuing to advise consumers to eat at least two portions of fish a week at a time when the ability of the marine environment to meet this demand is questionable”.
Meatless in Miami, one of the Miami New Times’s Short Order food blogs, gives the film a mention. Lauren Raskine, says: “Based on the book by UK journalist Charles Clover who has extensively researched [our consumption of seafood, the film] asserts 1.2 billion people will potentially starve and it won’t be pretty, folks.”
The Pathways to Abundant Living blog reviews the film. It says: “The End of the Line is not against all fishing or eating fish. Instead it advocates a responsible attitude towards endangered and over-exploited species of fish
Canadian magazine Common Ground also carries a review The End of the Line. Robert Alstead writes: “Rupert Murray’s team brings memorable footage from around the world to connect the dots between consumer tastes and ocean depletion.
“The film is grimly fascinating and offers prescriptions for better fisheries management.”
Finally for this week, Local Vertical blog reports that Charles Clover’s book The End of the Line has been the inspiration for a song.
Entitled Coma, it is by Kevin Hearn & Thin Buckle, and is taken from their new album Havana Winter, which is available from Kevin Hearn.com. You can listen to it here.
Whilst I understand the findings of this report, it is far too early to give such a positive message to the media. It is like saying the 10% of Bison left out of the original population have had an OK breeding season.
Marine conservation is in its infancy and is no where near where it needs to be in terms of reach, funding, awareness or action.
This story should be kept to the experts, as the public don’t even yet know how bad things really are. Wild seafood consumption needs to drop dramatically if we are going to have a chance of having oceans worth protecting.
Blueplanet, I could not disagree more.
The study is an honest, SCIENTIFIC, statement of facts. Scientists do not and should not ‘decide’ what information should be released to the public.
The undeniable message from the study was that many of our ocean ecosystems are in a very bad way. However, the positive is that in some areas where intensive management has been undertaken there are some green shoots. If this is not the evidence to throw in the face of the ‘what’s the point in trying’ people then I don’t know what is. This tells us that we CAN make a difference, but we must act, and we must act now.