Lately I've been thinking about fish. To eat. Which ones to eat? I'm trying to reduce my dependence on global warming activities, and fish are a good way of getting protein. My husband likes fish, and he's really not very good about vegetarian food. And I'm not very good about two sets of pots and pans and two menus.
So, being a committed locavore, and environmentalist, I've tried to merge the two, and found it very difficult. There seemed to be tradeoffs every place I tried.
First, lets look at being a locavore. Our consumer supported agriculture farm, Middle Earth, has a local fisherman, who fishes from Gloucester MA. We got fresh caught fish-fileted and deboned and everything. The fish he caught were flounder and cod. Good news on flounder, the EPA tells me that it has low levels of mercury. Whew, I knew there was a good reason I liked it. These are fished in the Atlantic.
Opps, Monterey Bay Aquarium tells me to avoid Atlantic flatfish. Why is this?
Flatfish
Pacific flatfish such as sole, flounder and halibut are a good alternative to those from the Atlantic, where historical overfishing has reduced populations.
Consumer Note
Over 13 species of flatfish [Glossary] are regularly caught in the Pacific. Common market names include sole, sanddab, turbot, plaice, fluke, flounder, and halibut. In most Pacific Coast seafood markets, many species of flounder are incorrectly referred to as soles. Pacific flatfishes, like their Atlantic cousins, are known as hirame when prepared for sushi.
Summary
Although Pacific flatfish populations are not considered to be low, there are ongoing concerns over bycatch and habitat impacts from bottom trawling. This method of catch impacts the seafloor, although bottom trawling on sandy or muddy seafloor (where flatfish often live) is less damaging than trawling over rocky or reef [Glossary] habitats. However, they are a good alternative to Atlantic flatfishes that have been overfished.
So now, I can't have flounder or halibut unless it is frozen and flown across the US to me.
OK what about cod? No way! Read what the Aquarium says about that!
Atlantic Cod
Avoid Atlantic cod from North America; it has been fished heavily for the past 50 years, resulting in massive population declines. Scientists agree that we are now fishing the last 10% of this population.
Summary
Despite strict management in the U.S. and Canada, cod populations remain overfished. Canadian populations are so low, that some are listed as endangered or threatened.
Most cod populations in the Northeast Atlantic are in extremely poor condition, with the exception of Icelandic and Barents Sea cod - which are a good alternative - when caught without trawl gear. Cod from these fisheries also have relatively better population levels.
Atlantic cod are groundfish, living along the seafloor at depths up to 1,312 feet (400 meters) on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean. Fishermen often catch cod with bottom trawl gear, which involves dragging large nets across the seafloor. Trawling damages marine habitats and accidentally catches other marine life, that is then discarded as unwanted catch.
It seems that I can have Atlantic Mackerel, Pollack, Sardines, Striped Bass and Herring, according to the Blue Ocean Institute. We do eat farmed Mussels, and they are very ok. We also eat Tilapia, and Lobster. Let's look into all these on the EPA site.
Tilapia is ok, and but I can only have 6 servings (how much is a serving) of Lobster a month. Too bad because Lobster is cheap this year because Iceland banks were destroyed by the credit crisis, and so Canada couldn't afford to buy our Lobster. Opps, that's another post.
Pollack is ok, but King Mackerel is way off the charts with mercury. Is Atlantic Mackerel the same as King Mackerel? Not this far north I learn. So, what about north Atlantic Mackerel. Are they safe? Who knows?
Sardines are fine. But Striped Bass is the 6 servings category. (How much is a serving?) Herring are fine too. Boney but whatever.
My husband's favorite fish bar none is Salmon. He's from Seattle, after all. I'm really confused about Salmon. We're not supposed to eat the farmed kind, I understand. I have gone to the health food store and bought small amounts of very highly priced frozen wild salmon, flown in from Alaska.
Looks like Pollack from our local fisherman. No wonder Gloucester is in fishing trouble.
