Cod Willing: David Abel on the Cod’s Resurgence

Since 1992, fish ’n chips fans may have noticed that there was no cod in their classic fried dish. That’s the year that the Canadian government issued a moratorium on fishing the popular, tasty species. It devastated the Newfoundland region’s economy, but it had to be done. The cod population had dwindled to nearly nothing at that time due to over-fishing and changing water temperatures. Our guest today on Sea Change Radio is Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist David Abel, who recently wrote a piece for the Boston Globe about how the cod has actually rebounded in recent times. We talk about the region’s historical relationship with cod, how science-informed policy can help reverse human-generated ecological damage, and Abel’s upcoming film on the subject, Sacred Cod.