I've copied Aaron and Frederick, and taken the entire Goanet list from the chain.
Aaron has written a few pieces earlier, as evocative. Rahul Today is the first day of the rest of your life ! On Tue, Jun 9, 2020 at 11:47 AM Guy Standing <[email protected]> wrote: > Dear Frederick, > > This is a brilliant article. Please congratulate the author. We will be > citing it in our book on the blue commons. > > Embedded in the analysis are some powerful lessons for the revival of the > blue commons. > > Go well. Guy Standing > > *Dr Guy Standing FAcSS* > *Professorial Research Associate* > *SOAS U**niversity of London* > > > *Hon.Co-President, Basic Income Earth Network > <https://basicincome.org>(BIEN)* > > *Indian basic income pilot video > <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UvErJvuWrWc>* > > *Why everyone deserves a basic income video > <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3edptV9C4ko>* > > > *Mob: +41 (0)79 647 6379* > > *Email: [email protected] <[email protected]>* > > *Website: www.guystanding.com <http://www.guystanding.com/>* > > *Facebook: www.facebook.com/ThePrecariat > <http://www.facebook.com/ThePrecariat>* > > *Latest books: Battling Eight Giants: Basic Income Now > <https://www.bloomsbury.com/uk/battling-eight-giants-9780755600656/> > (Bloomsbury, 2020); Plunder of the Commons: A Manifesto for Sharing Public > Wealth > <https://www.penguin.co.uk/books/308/308407/plunder-of-the-commons/9780141990620.html> > (Penguin, 2019); *Basic Income: And How We Can Make It Happen > <https://www.penguin.co.uk/books/304706/basic-income/> (Penguin, 2017); *The > Corruption of Capitalism: Why Rentiers Thrive and Work Does Not Pay > <https://www.bitebackpublishing.com/books/the-corruption-of-capitalism> > (Biteback, 2016) * > > > > > On Mon, 8 Jun 2020 at 22:05, Goanet Reader <[email protected]> wrote: > >> The Unwritten Rules of Oyster Fishing >> >> By Aaron Lobo [email protected] >> WhatsApp +91 +91 83089 39019 >> >> For World Ocean Day, Aaron >> Savio Lobo studies the >> fascinating rules of oyster >> fishing, and the surprising >> role they play in creating a >> more sustainable future. >> >> If there is one thing the COVID-19 pandemic has exposed, it >> is our heavy reliance on the global food network and the ease >> with which it can break down. It has also given us the >> opportunity to reflect on how our food is produced, and the >> cost (most often hidden) of its production. >> >> This is particularly true for the seafood sector which has >> been globally marred by overfishing, human-rights violations >> and the wanton destruction of marine ecosystems. Sourcing >> locally has never been more important than it is today. >> However, most of our local, traditional food systems will >> struggle to meet the demand if not adequately strengthened >> and incentivised. >> >> Summers in Goa are typically shellfish months -- a >> time to enjoy the diversity of clam, mussels and >> oysters, grown and matured to full size. As May >> heats up and urraq (the lighter and fruitier >> version of cashew feni) drinking is at its peak, I >> especially look forward to eating calvam (oysters) >> and shinaneo (green mussels). I must confess that >> while I love the Goan style-rawa fried shinaneo I >> am not a huge fan of Goan oyster bhaaji, which I >> find to be overpowered by xacuti masala. I resort >> to cooking oysters myself. >> >> Both oysters and mussels are available in plenty at the >> numerous fish markets in the state during this season, but I >> prefer to go straight to the source -- Pradip's home along the >> Nerul creek. Pradip and his family have been harvesting >> oysters for years now, and usually sell them at the Nerul >> market, or near the bridge. >> >> PHOTO: Freshly shucked plump Brackish river oysters >> >> HARVESTING OYSTERS >> >> In Goa, while both men and women are involved in harvesting >> oysters, there is typically a difference in the way they do >> it. Women can be seen chipping for hooded oysters >> (Saccostrea cucullata) with their sickles, on the exposed >> rocky rubble at low tide; while the men paddle out in their >> canoes with long bamboo poles, into the deeper waters of the >> creek, inhabited by the large Brackish water oyster >> (Magallana bilineata). >> >> They then push their poles into the creek's soft floor, which >> supports them as they lower themselves several feet below, to >> the bottom of the creek. Here, they sift through the soft >> sediments with their hands, emerging every couple of minutes >> with one or two large oysters. >> >> They use gloves to protect themselves from the razor-sharp >> oyster shells, which are often further encrusted with other >> oysters and barnacles. To make sure the oysters are alive >> and full, they tap the shell on the sides of their canoes. A >> hollow sound indicates they are dead and empty -- therefore, >> to be discarded. >> >> They do occasionally bring up entire rocks -- an >> oyster cluster! And if they get lucky, discarded >> car tyres encrusted with 20 or more large oysters. >> Paradoxically, this trash also serves as a >> substrate onto which the oyster larvae attach >> themselves and grow. >> >> Many of Goa's oyster collectors live in clustered hamlets of >> brightly coloured houses along the banks of creeks and >> backwaters. While men and women are both involved in the >> collecting, it is generally the women that do the shucking >> (removal of the oyster meat from the shell), cleaning and >> discarding the shells just outside their homes, along the >> banks of these creeks. >> >> During the summer months, piles of oyster shells are a >> characteristic installation outside the homes of many of >> these creek fishers, exposed at low tide. The tides later >> disperse these empty shells back into the creek, where they >> become an extremely important substrate onto which >> free-swimming oyster larvae attach themselves, at which >> stage, they are called 'spat'. >> >> Some of the large shells and oyster rock clusters >> are known as 'mother shells' (Calvam Hadde in >> Konkani, or Corpam for oyster shells). They are >> critically important as they provide a larger >> surface area onto which young oyster larvae can >> attach and grow. As a rule, Goa's oyster fishers >> would shuck these mother shells while they were out >> collecting in their canoes, or as soon as they got >> back to shore, to return the mother shells to the >> environment. This helps sustain future production >> of oysters in the area. >> >> However today, it is not just the people who live along the >> creek that harvest oysters. Being a tourist state, oysters >> and mussels are in very high demand, bringing collectors from >> other parts of Goa in large numbers, to these oyster-rich >> areas. >> >> A large part of the problem is that they take more than just >> oysters. These tidal flats and the shellfish they support >> are open access resources, which means anyone can harvest as >> much as they want -- a common problem faced in coastal and >> marine spaces that leads to overexploitation. >> >> To make transport easy, these collectors gather entire rocks, >> complete with mother shells and all, which they then fill >> into empty cement bags, transporting them back to their >> respective villages, often in the hinterland with no access >> to a creek or backwater. >> >> These missing dead shells would have performed yet another >> important function. Built of calcium carbonate, the alkali >> slowly leeches into the water, neutralising the acid levels >> in the estuary. This is extremely important as acids in the >> water can dissolve the shells of crustaceans and molluscs >> (snails, clams and oysters) exposing them to the elements and >> making them vulnerable to predators. Who would have imagined >> the removal of oyster shells could be linked to a decline in >> oyster production world over? >> >> For the same reason, reintroducing oyster shells >> (shell planting) is a common method used to restore >> degraded oyster beds. However today, our oceans >> are becoming so acidic that even this practice is >> not enough to restore balance. >> >> Ocean Acidification is the result of increasing levels of CO2 >> in the atmosphere, primarily linked to the burning of fossil >> fuels, which then dissolves in seawater. This acidification >> threatens the lives of many of our seafood favourites >> including lobster, crab, shrimp, oysters, clam and others -- >> basically everything that has a shell. We now need these >> shell resources in our oceans more than ever before. >> >> PHOTO: Men duck dive for the large Brackish water oysters in >> the Nerul creek >> >> A SUSTAINABLE CHOICE >> >> Oysters collected and farmed the right way are a very >> sustainable seafood option. They are lower down the food >> chain and their populations can recover well, even after a >> heavy collection, if allowed sufficient time. >> >> They also make good candidates for aquaculture. >> They are filter feeders, which means they obtain >> their food by sucking in large quantities of water >> through their gills; algae and plankton suspended >> in the water get trapped in their gill mucous, and >> ultimately make their way into the digestive tract. >> >> Simply put, farmed oysters do not need to be fed, and can be >> a low-cost enterprise. In contrast to this, the species >> commonly farmed in India, such as shrimp and Asian sea bass, >> have very high feed requirements. To grow a kilogram of >> Asian sea bass you would require 6-7 kilograms of fish feed. >> >> Fish for this feed comes from ecologically >> destructive trawl fisheries, and constitutes the >> low-value species in the catch called 'trash fish'. >> My research into this subject has found that >> although 'trash fish' may not have high commercial >> value, it constitutes a vast diversity of species >> including juveniles of commercially important >> species that are an important source of protein for >> millions of poor coastal communities in India. >> Aquaculture is currently being celebrated as the >> solution to our future food requirements, and to >> the overfishing crises. However, you don't need to >> be a scientist to know that farming fish such as >> sea bass, using current methods, is certainly not >> the smart way forward. >> >> Whether it's oysters, mussels or clams, it seems that Goa >> cannot keep pace with growing demands. Today, a large >> proportion of mussels and clams consumed in the state's >> restaurants and beach shacks have actually been brought in >> from other states. >> >> CHICALIM, AND THE FIGHT TO RECLAIM GOA'S OYSTER BAY >> >> The large expansive bays of Sancoale and Chicalim along the >> Zuari river are among Goa's shellfish hotspots. It almost >> feels like the human relationship with this ecosystem has >> remained unchanged for centuries; stake-nets still necklace >> the mouths of these bays. >> >> In the summer, large numbers of people can be seen >> collecting clams and oysters here. It is also one >> of the few remaining habitats in Goa where you can >> find window-pane oysters, whose shells continue to >> adorn the windows of many Goan homes. >> Unfortunately, this year's hot summer, coupled with >> low spring tides, left the extensive tidal flats >> and their oyster rocks exposed. People stuck at >> home during the lockdown, from several villages >> surrounding the bay, descended in hordes onto these >> flats, stripping them of oysters. Rather than >> leaving the mother shells behind, they carried away >> sack loads of oysters shells. This was much to the >> consternation of locals who feared for the future >> of the oysters, and the bay's health in general. >> >> PHOTO: Oyster-encrusted rocks and a lone mangrove exposed at >> low tide in Pallolem >> >> However, it would be unfair to attribute the decline of the >> bay and the demise of oyster fisheries to over-harvesting >> alone. Unused iron ore barges are anchored at various parts >> along this river stretch. Exposed to the forces of nature, >> they lie in a state of decay, leaching pollutants into the >> estuary. >> >> The degradation of these bays will not only affect bivalve >> habitats, but also species that use these sheltered areas as >> feeding grounds and nurseries. Destruction of these >> important estuarine habitats can ultimately translate to the >> decline in quantity and quality of some of Goa's favourite >> seafood. >> >> The brackish water oysters can live for several >> years, and both the live oysters and their shells >> are extremely important to the creek's health. The >> high densities of molluscs found here perform a >> massively undervalued service to Goa, which is >> filtering the estuary of its pollutants and toxic >> algal blooms (which happens when there are high >> levels of domestic sewage in the water). These >> blooms deplete the oxygen in the waters, and can >> cause massive fish die-offs, threatening local >> fisheries. >> >> The villagers of Chicalim and Sancoale have taken it upon >> themselves to save their bay. For the first time this May, >> several locals concerned about their bay's future went about >> planting Calvam haddes. To stabilise these mother shells, >> they covered them with nets, and monitor them regularly. We >> still have a long way to go, but the current pandemic has >> opened our eyes to the need to strengthen local food systems. >> Much like the local shellfish food-chain, all local >> production of foods needs to be analysed in a similar manner >> to increase the resilience of supplies. >> >> So what is my alternative to Goa's oyster bhaaji? >> >> I reserve a batch of handpicked Nerul oysters, and use a >> straightforward, delicious Thai recipe I learnt from my >> uncle, Peter Estibeiro, who loves Thailand (and its oysters) >> as much as I do. First, make sure your oven grill is hot (or >> you can use a pan if you don't have a grill). For sauce, >> chop up a few birds' eye chillies, onions and coriander, to >> which you then add fish sauce and lime juice in equal parts. >> Bake or lightly pan-fry the oysters for under five minutes, >> to prevent them from turning chewy. Drizzle with sauce, and >> serve. Peter recommends having a batch crispy-fried burnt >> garlic on hand, to sprinkle on just before eating. >> --------------------------------------- >> Aaron Savio Lobo is a marine conservation scientist, and a >> member of the IUCN SSC Marine Conservation Committee. You >> can follow his work at the link below. >> >> All photographs by Aaron Savio Lobo >> See images at >> https://www.goyajournal.in/blog/the-unwritten-rules-of-oyster-fishing-goa >> -- >> Goanet Reader is edited and compiled by Frederick Noronha. >> >> Your writer has contributed this work gratis, in public >> interest. Repay him with your comments, feedback and appreciation >> (if deserved). Share your comments with him (address on top) >> with a cc to [email protected] >> >
