Most world fisheries and major fish species were declining by 2000.

Evidence

By the close of the twentieth century, eleven out of fifteen of the world’s fishing areas and approximately 70 percent of its major fish species were declining in numbers and faced exigent circumstances. Atlantic cod, once the dominant species in the North Atlantic and a major foodstock, was already in serious decline. Catch of Atlantic cod decreased by 69 percent between 1968 and 1992. Atlantic bluefin tuna stock fell by more than 80 percent during the same time period. — Richard J. Lazarus, The Making of Environmental Law, 921

Categorization

• SHARE: Hard numeric data on cod and bluefin collapse would interest a fisheries or environmental friend.