The oceans under serious threat

The island of Palawan in the Philippines is considered an environmental haven of cleanliness and beauty. But what was discovered recently in the fish market of Puerto Princesa - a dorado fish, one of many they say with a belly full of plastic waste such as bottle caps, candy wrappers and a yellow plastic spoon - shocked the customers in the fish market. Other fish vendors said they frequently find similar plastic trash in the fish.

Besides pollution, there were big losses to small-scale fisherfolk in coastal communities in recent years because of the proliferation of commercial fishing fleets and factory ships of other countries. Not only is China grabbing the fishing grounds of the Philippines and other Southeast Asian nations, but huge fishing fleets run by corporations dominate the ocean. They are destroying the oceans by irresponsible "bottom trawling" and many fish species are needlessly killed. The ships drag huge nets along the ocean floor destroying everything in their paths, destroying corals and ecosystems and habitats of fish. The commercial fishing industry kills between 0.97 and 1.97 trillion wild fish worldwide every year. This is called "by-catch" and "accidental take."