Dynamite Fishing-The Cost...

At certain areas of Cyprus, there are unexplained bangs that occur regularly and are currently being investigated. Although there have been a number of theories, most believe the cause of these underwater bangs is Dynamite Fishing.

Dynamite fishing (or blast fishing) is used as an easy means of catching fish by stunning or killing large numbers of them through the use of explosives. It is highly destructive and, in most parts of the world, illegal!

This method of fishing is incredibly inhumane, as the shockwaves from the explosions rupture the swim bladders of the fish causing them to lose buoyancy and direction. This leads to a prolonged death from drowning.

Some of the fish caught in the blast will float to the surface but the vast majority of them will sink to the seabed. The fishermen come and scoop up those that float at the surface, while those that sink are left to die down below.

Combine this with the fact that dynamite will kill everything indiscriminately and you see that this is an exceedingly wasteful means of fishing. Not to mention the damage that it inflicts on every other part of our oceans including; food chain destruction, coral and sponge damage, habitat destruction, leading to reduced rates of reproduction and diminished fish stocks.

Not only is dynamite fishing killing sea life, it is dangerous for the fishermen using it too, as much of the explosives used in dynamite fishing are home produced with all of the hazards that entails. Equally, anyone within the shockwave's radius is at risk. This includes swimmers and divers!

Quite simply, Dynamite fishing is unsustainable. With the wastage and damage inflicted on the ecosystem, it will not be long before the sea is uninhabitable and nobody can win from this diagnosis. There will be no fish left to catch for the fishermen, there will be nothing to see for the divers, snorkellers and swimmers and the world be a poorer place for it.

A healthy ocean equates to a healthy income, particularly in tourist dependent countries like Cyprus.

So, let's get to the bottom of these underwater bangs and ensure that if there has been Dynamite Fishing in Cyprus, it becomes extinct instead of the fish life we all treasure!

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