Overfishing In South Padre Island

The Gulf of Mexico is a large fishing import for the southern U.S, Cuba, and Mexico. South Padre Island is a city in Texas located near the Gulf of Mexico. The ratio of males to females is 100 females to 123 males. There are many encouragements made by the island to attract more residents. For example, males generally move to the island due to their interest in fishing. The island has an abundance of jobs related to fishing as it is a large fish import for the community. However, illegal commercial fishing has been a conflict for the island as it results in overfishing. In recent years, there was a crisis in South Padre Island where the red snapper was overfished by Mexican fishermen. Thousands of dollars of fish were illegally imported. The population of red snappers has been decreasing over the years because of overfishing. The first signs of the large commercial fishing of the red snapper were shown in the 1980s as overfishing was not seen as a major problem to the community then. Due to the island having an abundant amount of fish, overfishing was never seen as a threat to the community. However, as the red snapper’s overfishing crisis has begun to be shown by the media, we have come to understand the causes and consequences of this. This crisis resulted in many job losses for fishermen. Furthermore, stated by Suzanne Freeman, another way that red snappers are overfished is by sport fishing that starts on June 1st and ends on August 3rd. Sportfishing is mainly done by males and it’s the thrill of catching the largest fish. With this, other marine life can be largely affected, causing an imbalance in the food chain. Overfishing affects our community daily. It is important to acknowledge this problem because the consequences can be severe. Citizens have the responsibility to encourage and support their politicians to make those decisions. We need to help prevent overfishing. Ecosystems, food security, jobs, economies, and coastal cultures all depend on it. Reaching the right deal might not be easy, but a sustainable future for the oceans and ourselves is within reach. We must see this opportunity and act now to ensure a better future for each and every one of us. Let’s open our eyes to this moment in history and embrace the challenge we face and do something humans are very good at. Changing the world. At that point. We will be proud to call it our planet.