Environment

The End of the Line Documentary: An Inconvenient Truth for Fish

by Tina Kells | May 29, 2009 at 04:00 pm

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The End of the Line Documentary, which airs for the first time on June 8, 2009, promises to expose the vast environmental damage done by over fishing and is touted as An Inconvenient Truth for Fish, a reference to Al Gore's award winning environmental study on global warming, An Inconvenient Truth.

When the documentary airs, The End of the Line shows how a culture of excess has contributed to the rapid decline of fish stocks worldwide. It even singles out celebrity chefs and high end restaurants as part of the problem. The opening scene alludes to the issue of trendy foods and how something that seems so small can impact the planet as a whole.

As Mr Clover says, fish is no longer a guilt-free meal: "Trolling (using drag nets along the bottom of the ocean) is like ploughing a field seven times a year."

He aims to show the viewer why we should all be thinking twice before ordering fish and chips.

One shocking statistic used in the film claims: "The global long-lining industry sets 1.4 billion hooks per year; if you wrapped the lines used around the earth, they could wrap 550 times."

Mr Clover brings it closer to home when he states: "Fifty per cent of the cod caught in the North Sea was caught illegally, so every other fish on your plate was stolen – stolen from you."

Even celebrities are guilty. The film targets restaurant Nobu, part-owned by Robert de Niro and frequented by Brad Pitt and Kate Moss, that is still serving bluefin tuna despite the fact the fish is in danger of extinction.