There is an interesting story about Asian carp, a species of fish found in Southeast Asia (especially China and Korea) that eats algae and water vegetation. Usually, the growth of too many algae and vegetation limits the number of fish that can be produced in a water body.
If the vegetation grows too much, it can completely wipe out all fish from the water body. For this reason, fishermen dislike algae and other kinds of rapid growing vegetation found in water.
In the 1960s and 70s, scientists in Arkansas (a state in the USA) chanced upon a novel experiment. Saying no to chemicals, pesticides and artificial ingredients, they simply imported Asian carp to control the growth of algae, plants and snails in their water bodies.
These carps were also used in academic research and treatment of sewage plants. Within days of keeping some of these Asian carp in a few water bodies, the problems started fading. The water was clearer than ever before.
US scientists studied the Asian carp further. They found that it was an aggressive species that devoured whatever came in its way. It was also discovered that it reproduced very fast.
Also, the scientists knew that in the American rivers, the fish had no natural prey. After initial research, it came across that the benefits of the carp prevailed over the damages.
As such, more live Asian carp were imported not for eating but to keep their water bodies clear. Besides, fish production grew without using harmful chemicals.
However, what happened eventually was quite upsetting. The nonnative fish that was supposed to be kept only in farming ponds accidentally escaped and spread rampantly through the fresh waterways across America, threatening the multi-billion dollar fishing industry.
Every few years, someone would catch a few random carp in the rivers. Though it is impossible to prevent fish from escaping to the rivers when so many fish farmers have them, a few had managed to escape to the rivers. They seemingly posed no threat to the local fish species. But it was not true that they posed no threat.
A decisive moment came in 1990 when a few US areas witnessed floods. As soon as the flood receded, it left many stranded dead fish behind. The scientists were stunned to find that 9 out of 10 dead fish beside the rivers were Asian carp. They were actually everywhere! They had practically wiped out the local fish species causing huge ecological damage.
Over the years, the fish has spread to a majority of the states in the USA. Nonnative Asian carp continue to destroy American aquaculture at a staggering rate, rendering native ecology vulnerable.
The fisheries industry has been badly hit and innumerable earnings are undercut. So far, the attempts to curb them have not been successful.
Under the US Department of the Interior, a specific wing by the name ‘Asian Carp Control’ has been established to eliminate them in massive numbers and contain the further invasion. There are competitions where the most catches are rewarded.
These competitions happen every year and have been happening for decades. They are fun events for many locals. But all this hasn’t helped anyway dent the population of the fish a bit.
And interestingly, these fish aren’t small. Most of them are as big as a cat or a small dog. They are voracious eaters, turning into an outright nuisance.
It isn’t that the early scientists and fish farmers were unaware of the nature of the fish. That they increase so fast, have swift procreation and invasive nature was unimaginable for them. Their precision and acumen failed them.
Yes, fishing isn’t bad but fishing in bad waters is. And then, the bait can turn invasively menacing if experimented upon in an unfamiliar ecosystem. From a shoal of fish to a bunch of individuals, the lack of foresight and vision turns things quite scary.
The seemingly small interventions snowball into a big catastrophe. Whether it is war or peace; politics or policies, plans or roadmaps; or our routine decisions—we bungle up and suffer without end.
There are so many stories in the world around us that smack of insidious missteps, denoting the tragic moments in history. Trojans never realized that the wooden horse was arriving with their end. Napoleon’s Grande Armée was gobbled up by the wide wastelands of Russia.
The accidents of history become terrible burdens. So getting decisions right is not easy. Lack of insight, poor information, imperfect judgment, silly sensibility and reckless self-confidence—this all fuses into a cataclysmic coalition; it all builds up the blow.
A mistake of a moment leaves loads of regretful results!
Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in this article are the personal opinions of the author.
The facts, analysis, assumptions and perspective appearing in the article do not reflect the views of GK