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Killing for Carp : An Environmental Disaster.
The British Carp Culture Debate:
The Motion: Modern Carp Fishing – An Environmental Disaster?
Proposer – Richard Bendall.
In what is hoped to be the first in a series of British Carp Culture debates Richard proposes the motion. This does not mean he necessarily supports the ideas he is putting forward.
Plastic & its’ uses in carp fishing – irreplaceable?
Micro plastics- invading every corner of the world from the top of Everest to both poles & the bottom of the remotest parts of the oceans. They are able to cross the blood brain barrier in most living creatures from plankton to people with, as yet unknown consequences.
Modern Carp Fishing comes wrapped in plastic – mostly single use – with biodegradable alternatives a rarity. All for the carp fishing industry’s convenience. Carp related companies occasionally dress themselves in environmentally aware guises – not often. Honourable exception being Cornz – Plastic Free Fake Corn Hookbaits – Tails Up Bait
Consumer Capitalism & Carp.
Consumer Capitalism is the beast that will eventually eat itself & our planet. Exploitation of people & the environment is integral to its function.
Carp fishing tackle is mostly manufactured thousands of miles away – its’ transportation adding to pollution & global heating. These manufacturing settings are not held to the same high environmental standards as the UK – our products, their environment polluted – our cheaper goods, their, low paid employees, whose workplace conditions would not be tolerated in the UK.
The soothing balm of Carp Fishing whose ingredients include despotic governments & oppressed peoples sweat & tears. Huzzah for the next product drop video.
Killing for Carp.
The production of the bait ingredients we are using contribute to the degradation of once pristine environments & is wreaking havoc with the ecosystems there. https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2018/mar/13/krill-fishing-poses-serious-threat-to-antarctic-ecosystem-report-warns Krill are a key part of the delicate Antarctic food chain. They feed on marine algae and are a key source of food for whales, penguins and seals. They are also important in removing the greenhouse gas carbon dioxide from the atmosphere by eating carbon-rich food near the surface and excreting it when they sink to lower, colder water. A recent analysis of the global krill industry predicted it was on course to grow 12% a year over the next three years…Krill populations have declined by 80% since the 1970s. Global warming has been blamed partly because the ice that is home to the algae and plankton on which krill feed is retreating.
Fish oil and fishmeal industry harming food security in west Africa, warns UN | Fish oil | The Guardian The UN’s food agency has warned that the “overexploitation” of fish in west Africa by the growing global fishmeal and fish oil industry is having a “considerably negative impact” on food security, undermining the ability of local communities to feed themselves.
Feeding carp & the starving of people going hand-in-glove. Who knows what goes into mass produced carp baits? If the impact of processed food for carp mirrors the health impact on people carp lives will be becoming shorter too.
Processed Food & Carp Health
https://www.theguardian.com/society/2024/feb/28/ultra-processed-food-32-harmful-effects-health-review ‘Ultra-processed food is directly linked to 32 harmful effects to [human] health. Other than the manufacturers, who knows what goes into mass produced carp baits? If its anything like the processed food we eat the carp we care for & fish for are likely to be suffering from a range of health conditions that, like humans, they have not evolved to be able cope with.
Honourable exception – BOILIES – THE BUG Archives – DNA Baits a natural, sustainable bait with low levels of human food grade preservative. The Switch Archives – DNA Baits 100% sustainable, without a single trace of fishmeal.
The Local Environment & Wildlife in the UK –
With more carp fisheries being set up as mono-cultures – other species being stripped out to promote carp growth – they are moving towards becoming one dimensional environments. Add in the artificial carp biomass being sustained through feeding & you have wild places being turned into carp aquariums where you can fish comfortably for hand fed pets.
Remember the days when a snuffling badger woke you in the night or a fox warily approached for a treat? Fenced fisheries prevent larger mammals reaching water & diminish the biodiversity of the lake eco-system. Hold on though, smaller mammals – such as mink can pass through fencing designed to keep otters out. Remember the water vole? – Survey water voles – People’s Trust for Endangered Species (ptes.org) – during the 1980s and 90s. Illegally released American mink spread furiously across the countryside, preying on the vulnerable native mammals, which they continue to do today. In just ten years, water vole numbers crashed by almost 90%.
An unintended consequence of carp fishing industry fencing trend has created fisheries that are havens for mink & prevent mammals that would displace them from accessing our waters – Mink numbers drop as the otter bites back | The Independent | The Independent otters are displacing American mink along river banks across the country. In rare cases, otters are even killing mink in direct combat… My prediction is that as otters recolonise the UK, mink numbers will fall…
How many carp fisheries do you know that actively promote biodiversity by such actions as mink control & re-introduction of water voles?
Ecological impacts of water-based recreational activities on freshwater ecosystems: a global meta-analysis | Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences (royalsocietypublishing.org) recreational angling facilitates the spread of invasive species… freshwater-related recreational activities were found to have significant negative ecological impacts… angling gear exposes particular threat to wildlife because of the use of hooks, non-degradable fishing lines and toxic material such as lead [47,56].
Do our environmental & promotion of biodiversity credentials outweigh the tons of drop-off leads, miles of monofilament, bankside erosion, transference of invasive species (plant & animal) & disease from water to water? We claim massive environmental benefits for angling – but often do nothing to promote the same, in fact any environmental benefits are often swept aside in the drive for more & bigger in carp fisheries.
The Carp Fishing Industry.
The relentless grind of this industry for more & ‘better’ now means that carp are its cash cows. Cash cows that are exploited as the foundational product that drives the industry. As in most consumer capitalist business structures the need to reduce chance & guarantee ‘success’ for the consumer has a devastating impact. Faster growing strains of carp, artificially fed & shorter lived. Waterside environments managed for angler convenience not a diverse eco-system – artificial grass being quite popular to prevent mud touching the paying customer. Carp bred to suit the current fashion for how they look. Pellet reared carp that go into pellet fed waters. The harrying of carp through use of bait boats, drones & echo sounders eats at the soul of carp fishing – the industry uses all the science behind marketing to ensure these things become ‘must haves.’ The carp fishing industry can only survive through delivery & consumption of new products, an endless stream of social media, (so dull through its unimaginative uniformity), & an army of zombie carpers who need feeding products as much as the pellet carp do.
Honourable exception – Sean Simms Fishing Tackle The ethos of the brand is a push towards environmentally friendly fishing tackle products with sustainable base materials and 100% recyclable/biodegradable packaging to replace the usual plastics. Additionally, every effort has been made to obtain UK-sourced materials, so you can rest assured your products’ production was kind to the environment and the natural materials used are no threat to the beautiful creatures of the countryside.
Who’s going to write back & fight back for modern carp fishing?