3.1. Fishing

The oceans have been fished for thousands of years and are an integral part of human society. Fish have been important to the world economy for all of these years. Fisheries of today provide about 16% of the total world's protein with higher percentages occurring in developing nations. Marine fisheries are very important to the economy and well-being of coastal communities, providing food security, job opportunities, income and livelihoods as well as traditional cultural identity.

The word fisheries refers to all of the fishing activities in the ocean, whether they are to obtain fish for the commercial fishing industry, for recreation or to obtain ornamental fish or fish oil. Fishing activities resulting in fish not used for consumption are called industrial fisheries. Due to the relative abundance of fish on the continental shelf, fisheries are usually marine and not freshwater.