Environmental Impact of our Hobby.

[Aquattro]

Originally Posted by jorjef

We take 100 percent, give back zero.. Net, very negative affect.

Ya, I tend to agree. Lots of arguments minimizing the impact, as in not as bad as "X", but nothing positive.

I gained a strong liking of killer whales after seeing them live at the aquarium, but I still disagree with keeping them Sure, not as bad as killing them with pollution or sticking a harpoon in their heads, but the question here is "is reefing good for the environment", not is reefing as bad as other things affecting wild ecosystems? Two different things.

So how is our hobby good for the wild reef? How many of us, out of all of us, have gained a passion for reefs and given back in any way?

[kien]

I think I probably do more harm going out to sushi once a week.

[Aquattro]

Originally Posted by kien

I think I probably do more harm going out to sushi once a week.

Sure, but that's food. It sustains your family. The tank is purely recreational at the expense of the creatures inside. Some could argue that sushi is recreational, depending on your chopstick skills But I digress...

[daplatapus]

Does me having Nemo in my tank affect a reef...? Sure. Does me having all those fancy gizmo's to keep Nemo alive impact the environment....? Sure.

Me living on this planet impacts the environment. And If I've learned one thing about the negative impact I and others have had on this planet is that the only way to minimize that impact is by education.
The problem many people have is they are ignorant of their impact on the world around them. And some just don't care. We'll have a hard time fixing those people.
Ignorance can changed. If you can get people to care about something, show them how beautiful things are that unless they dive and go see it for themselves, you may get them to care about the bigger picture. You can watch all those shows on the Love Nature channel, but seeing those same animals live has an affect on people. Although, to be sure, seeing reefs devastated by greedy buggers doesn't hurt to make people think either.
I know for a fact, many people who visit my house and see my tank think differently about the ocean and the things in it. For the most part many of them have no idea what's under there. The kids are enthralled to see a tank. Maybe teaching them may help the next generation....

But ultimately I have a tank because because I love the look of a pretty blue box in my living room.

Brad, you pot stirrer you

[kien]

Actually, I don't need sushi to live. It's just as much a luxury as the reef tank.

Mankind has domesticated plants and animals for eons. For various purposes and for better or for worse. Well, for both actually. Personally, I am under no delusion that I am helping the reefs in any way. What I do know that I am doing is my best to provide a long and healthy life for the creatures that are under my care. This includes the tank as well as my gerbils and all my house plants.

I'm no specialist by any stretch of the imagination, but I would like to think that the creatures that are captured for the trade have nearly an equal chance against any other natural predator. Yes, I know humans have an unfair advantage (tools, chemical, etc), but fundamentally we are just another predator. So yes, by extension I am a predator to these fish. However, I am probably the nicest predator they will ever encounter in their lifetime. If you gave them a choice between me and my 150g tank versus a barracuda, I wonder which they would choose.

Sorry, what was the question again?

[Dearth]

This question pops up often and to be honest there is no easy answer has the hobby harmed the ocean yes it has but to what degree nobody can really answer the same goes for how much has the hobby helped the oceans and there is no question this hobby has helped the oceans but again to what degree is anyone's answer.

Now to step outside the box I am not what you would call an environmentalist I live and work in an industry that cuts down trees for a living to make people's lives easier however environmentalists and Eco-terrorists would have the populace believe we are destroying our forests and habitat for animals. Sadly most people go off half cocked and start spouting logging is evil, pulp and paper is evil and so on (surprising considering most of these people live in and use what we make from trees how eco friendly are they really). It would probably surprise many that forests across the world have actually increased in size including here in BC and there is more habitat available than 25 years ago however most environmentalists and Eco-terrorists don't want to hear that all they hear is what they want to hear.

So what is the point of my out of the box post everything above can be superimposed over the oceans including fishing and collection farming. 30 years ago everybody went crazy with pulling things out of the ocean it is after all a renewable resource then about 20 years ago it was realized that the oceans were changing with overfishing, massive destruction by drag netters and trawlers and collectors of species however it took time to get international regulations in place in the mean time oceans were dying now jump to the present previously killed coral fields and out fished areas are replenishing and while some areas are dying other areas are flourishing but you never about these in the news why is that.

So again how much has the hobby hurt the oceans probably less than we think how much has this hobby opened people's eyes to the ocean and its beauty a lot has it made an impact that is hard to say only time will tell with actual science and not because it makes a good story to thump chests over.

[Aquattro]

This is pretty much me

Originally Posted by daplatapus

But ultimately I have a tank because because I love the look of a pretty blue box in my living room.

Justified kinda like this

Originally Posted by kien

If you gave them a choice between me and my 150g tank versus a barracuda, I wonder which they would choose.

Dom, not really trying to stir the pot(much), just engage in a bit of thought with what we do. When I have time to actually sit in front of my pretty blue box, I often think of these things.

Do we hurt? Sure, I don't think there's an argument against that. Does it matter in the big scheme of things? Probably not that much. As Kien says, how many fish do we save from those evil barracudas every year?

Perhaps those nights where we get to sit in front of the tank and ponder, we might ponder on how to make things better. Or eat popcorn. One of those.

[rsisvixen]

Well human kind is pretty much a negative impact on every environment on the planet if you really want to get down to it not just the reefs, and once we start really getting out into space more we'll probably find a way to negatively impact the solar system as well

But I digress, strides are being made to put corals back into the ocean and reefs and maybe one day we'll be able to reintroduce species back as well.

[Aquattro]

Originally Posted by rsisvixen

Well human kind is pretty much a negative impact on every environment on the planet if you really want to get down to it not just the reefs, and once we start really getting out into space more we'll probably find a way to negatively impact the solar system as well

Oh, for sure. I bet our reefing activities aren't even a blip on the radar compared to everything else I have more plastic in my TV than all my reef gear put together!

[Reef Pilot]

Originally Posted by Dearth

Now to step outside the box I am not what you would call an environmentalist I live and work in an industry that cuts down trees for a living to make people's lives easier however environmentalists and Eco-terrorists would have the populace believe we are destroying our forests and habitat for animals. Sadly most people go off half cocked and start spouting logging is evil, pulp and paper is evil and so on (surprising considering most of these people live in and use what we make from trees how eco friendly are they really). It would probably surprise many that forests across the world have actually increased in size including here in BC and there is more habitat available than 25 years ago however most environmentalists and Eco-terrorists don't want to hear that all they hear is what they want to hear.

Reminds me, many years ago, had to go work (in a sawmill) up north (near PG actually) one year to make/save up enough money so I could finish school. Prior to that, I was definitely anti-logging (dominated media at the time), but got a real eye opener while I was up there. What I learned is how more in tune the people up there are with the environment, not just with working outdoors, but playing outdoors as well with fishing, camping, hiking, etc.

So makes me wonder too, whether the collectors in the indo pacific, where we get our corals from, are really damaging the environment as much as the media wants us to believe. They live (and play) there, so would think they have some interest in not destroying their own environment. And just like logging, have to believe that "sustainable harvesting" practices have evolved to encourage that.

I take much greater exception to resort building in some areas (that I have seen in person, like Mexico and the Caribbean) where the associated fill and artificial beaches, have created silt and pollution that kill off the sensitive corals. I have gone snorkeling there and have seen the crumbled stick piles of dead SPS forests. And it is us, as tourists, that ultimately are the cause of that, too.