Oceans make up over 75% of the entire planet. That said, it is critical to understand the significance of the contents of the oceans. Since fish and marine products make up a large part of our diet, fishing practices must be properly managed. In this essay, overfishing will be defined, its consequences will be revealed, and plans for appropriate distribution of fish will be made. Overfishing is a major problem in today's economy. Excessive or too frequent fishing practices lead to a decrease in the fish population. The constant removal of fish from the oceans (fishing) affects both adult and small fish. As adult fish continue to decline, mating becomes more difficult or even impossible, resulting in an overall shortage of fish in the oceans. Pepijn Koster defines overfishing as: “Overfishing can be defined in several ways. However, it all boils down to one simple point: catching too many fish for the system to sustain leads to an overall degradation of the system. Overfishing is a sustainable use of the oceans” (par.1). When fish stocks cannot be replenished faster than they are being depleted, a reduction in the fish population occurs, which is what is called overfishing depletes fish stocks. Consumer demand for fish has increased dramatically over the past decade or so, so much so that the fishing industry is designing new and innovative ways to catch more fish and at a faster rate to meet consumer demand. What the fishing industry doesn't realize, however, is that the removal of fish from the oceans is too great and too rapid for new fish stocks to be created. Therefore, no mating occurs, leaving the oceans emptier every day. If this rate continued, all the fish in the ocean would be almost non-existent. We are already seeing a sharp decline in fish populations: "In 2003, a scientific report estimated that industrial fishing had reduced the number of large ocean fish to just 10% of their pre-industrial population." (para. 6). brings the main consequence of the decrease in the fish population. People rely on fish for survival (in some countries, fish is their only food source) and rely on marine life for products (goods such as lipstick, petroleum jelly, cosmetics, etc.). As fish stocks deplete, fishing is declining. getting to the point where there are no jobs.