The impact of fishing on the environment:- The fishing industry’s technology is now so efficient that all the world’s major fish stocks can no longer replace themselves fast enough to keep up with the rate at which they are being caught. In the North Sea mackerel have already reached ‘commercial extinction’. Unless over-fishing stops cod and haddock, the staple of the UK’s fish and chip shop will go the same way. The size of fish being landed is going down, and fleets have to go further afield for catches. Another problem is the accidental catch of immature fish, such as whiting and herring, which die before they have a chance to reproduce.