Ocean heating and overfishing need to be tackled together | Letter

2026-03-03 - 18:23

Fish populations are tied directly to food security, coastal livelihoods and ecosystem stability, writes Saad Kassis-Mohamed of the WeCare Foundation The most troubling aspect of your report (Chronic ocean heating fuels ‘staggering’ loss of marine life, study finds, 25 February) is not only the scale of marine decline, but how easily it can be misunderstood. If short-term marine heatwaves create temporary gains in colder areas, institutions may mistake local improvement for broader recovery while the overall system continues to weaken. This is not an abstract environmental concern. Fish populations are tied directly to food security, coastal livelihoods and ecosystem stability. When long-term ocean warming steadily reduces biomass, this should be treated as a policy and public accountability issue as much as a scientific one. Continue reading...