In a new effort, EDF is helping to establish a network of Marine Protected Areas, where fishing is banned or significantly restricted. This year EDF worked with local groups to designate part of the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary as a reserve in which harvesting of fish and other wildlife is prohibited. EDF is working to establish other protected areas in various coastal waters. In California, EDF continued its longstanding efforts to restore the ecological integrity of the San Francisco Bay and Delta. To assist in Bay-Delta restoration, EDF scientists recommended a system of key indicators of ecosystem health and developed measures to put needed freshwater into the bay.
Aquaculture now produces one-quarter of the seafood consumed worldwide.
A new EDF report, Murky Waters , shows that improperly managed fish and shrimp farms can contaminate coastal ecosystems with chemicals and untreated sewage. In addition, escaped fish and shrimp can spread disease and compete with native species. Along the Texas Gulf Coast, the leading site of U.S. shrimp farms, EDF is fighting to extend state wastewater discharge regulations to all coastal shrimp farms. At an international meeting of the aquaculture industry, EDF organized environmental and other groups from around the world to advocate alternative, environmentally responsible fish-farming practices.