Seafood is one of the most popular and healthful food choices today, but overfishing, pollution, coastal development and climate change are increasingly threatening the world’s marine fisheries. Populations of tunas, sharks and swordfish have declined by 90 percent from historic levels. Fish farming is quickly replacing fishing as the predominant source of seafood. Scientists project that if present trends continue, most major commercial fisheries could collapse by 2048.

Michael Sutton, vice-president of the Monterey Bay Aquarium, where he directs the Center for the Future of the Oceans, will discuss the threat of unsustainable fishing and what the aquarium is doing to counter it at the March program of the Yosemite Area Audubon Society. Sutton will present his slide program, “The Future of Seafood,” Thursday, March 11, at the Mariposa Methodist Church parish hall on Sixth Street between Highway 140 and Bullion Street. The program will begin at 7 p.m.

Governments have been unable to reverse the decline of ocean health through public policy alone. Building powerful commercial incentives for ocean conservation is essential to effective management of marine fisheries. The Sustainable Seafood movement harnesses market forces and the power of consumer choice in favor of sustainable fisheries.

Sustainable seafood programs show consumers how their seafood choices make a difference to the health of the oceans. Commonly used pocket guides help consumers make better choices when shopping and dining. More detailed information is available for chefs and seafood buyers. These programs are based on simple economics: If those who buy seafood also demand sustainable, well-managed fisheries, the industry will shift to support more effective fishery management. All levels of the seafood supply chain are involved: seafood lovers, chefs, wholesalers, retailers, culinary school faculty and students, and food service companies.

The Monterey Bay Aquarium works at the forefront of the Sustainable Seafood movement. In the last decade, it has distributed tens of millions of Seafood Watch pocket guides (Sutton will have them available at his program) and illuminated the issue for consumers and chefs. Today, large-volume seafood buyers such as Wal-Mart and ARAMARK have committed to using only sustainable seafood sources.

As his role at the Monterey Bay Aquarium suggests, Sutton is a highly accomplished authority on ocean conservation. In 2007, and again in 2009, Governor Schwarzenegger appointed him to the California Fish and Game Commission. He recently coauthored a book, “Ocean and Coastal Law and Policy,” published by the American Bar Association. He has lectured at graduate seminars on ocean conservation at Harvard, Yale, Columbia, Stanford, Tufts, George Washington University and the University of Rhode Island.

Previously, Sutton helped establish ocean conservation programs at the David and Lucile Packard Foundation and the World Wildlife Fund (WWF), where he founded the Marine Stewardship Council. He currently serves as chairman of the Wild Salmon Center and a board member of LightHawk, Ocean Champions and the Sea Change Investment Fund.

Before joining the WWF, Sutton served as a special agent with the U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service and as a park ranger with the National Park Service in Yosemite, Yellowstone, Biscayne, and Virgin Islands National Parks and Death Valley National Monument. He received a bachelor’s degree in wildlife biology from Utah State University in 1978 and pursued graduate studies in marine biology at the University of Sydney, Australia. In 1992, he received a law degree in international and natural resources law from George Washington University's National Law Center in Washington, D.C. He lives in Carmel Valley with his wife and two children.

Sutton’s presentation is open and free to the public, although donations to defray program costs and to support Audubon’s local activities are welcome. Refreshments will be available.

Call 742-5579 for additional information.

The Yosemite Area Audubon Society is affiliated with the National Audubon Society. Both the national organization and the local chapter are dedicated to the preservation of natural habitats and native species, and to educating and inspiring others to help protect those resource values.