Foundation - 1.3 Cod fisheries Case Study

Question 1

Location

Answer 1

Newfoundland and Labrador (Canadian province)

Question 2

Background

Answer 2

Once the most productive fishery in the world
* supporting communities and economies alongside Canada’s eastern coast
* jobs, food and tourism

Question 3

The problem

Answer 3

Decades of intensive fishing caused cod population to decline to unsustainable levels due to technological advances and rising demand

Question 4

How did overfishing cause the problem?

Answer 4

Mid 20th century:
* advancements in fishing technology (factory trawlers and sonar technology)
* allowed fishermen to catch much greater amounts of fish than even before
* by 1970, they had rapidly spiked up to around 800,000 Cod caught
* rapid population decline of cod as fish were harvested faster than they could reproduce

Question 5

Ecosystem impact

Answer 5

Cod played crucial role in marine ecosystem as both predator and prey
* decline led to imbalances in ecosystem, affected food chain and disrupted ecological processes

Question 6

Economic fallout

Answer 6

• 37,000 jobs lost
• communities faced economic hardship and social difficulties
• moratorium on codfish
• shift in local diet and cultural practices