Research has provided a new tool for managing coral reefs and tropical fisheries by providing clear targets for sustainability.
As fish biomass declines, thresholds are crossed from which it is increasingly hard to get back. It has been found that between 300-600 kilos per hectare of fish biomass is the maximum sustainable yield.
“The consequences of overfishing can be severe to the ecosystem and may take decades to recover, but hundreds of millions of people depend on reefs for food and livelihoods, so banning fishing altogether isn’t a reality in many nations,” Dr Nick Graham said.
Read more at James Cook University