Fisheries losing $50 billion a year

By Jasmin Melvin

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - As more and more fishermen chase fewer and fewer fish, $50 billion (29 billion pounds) are lost each year in potential economic benefits to the fishing industry, a report released Wednesday said.

Released by the World Bank and the United Nations' Food and Agricultural Organisation, the report blamed poor management, inefficiencies and overfishing for more than $2 trillion of avoidable economic losses over the last three decades.

In a time of worldwide financial turmoil, the amount may seem like "small change," said Kieran Kelleher, the World Bank's fisheries team leader, but fisheries are in a global crisis and adding to lost opportunities for economic growth.

Better management and a move to more sustainable fishing practices could turn much of the billions of dollars lost each year into economic benefits for fishers and coastal communities, the report said.

"Fisheries are a tremendous source of income, employment and wealth creation if managed properly," said Daniel Gustafson, director of the liaison office for North America at the FAO.

Significant financial losses in marine fishing operations are the result of depleted fish stocks and fleet overcapacity.

Shrinking fish populations, a result of pollution and habitat loss, have kept annual global marine catches at around 85 million tons for the past decade despite advanced fishing technologies and larger fishing fleets.

Fewer fish cause productivity -- or the catch per fisher or per vessel -- to decline. So as fishing fleets grow in size, they add only to redundant investments and harvesting efforts.