Commercial overfishing damages fish populations, marine habitats and ecosystems — consequences that also affect people who depend on the ocean for food and work. So Google collaborated with nonprofits Oceana and SkyTruth to create Global Fishing Watch, an interactive map that, through both satellite and land-based tracking technology, gives a near real-time look at commercial fishing across the globe. The watchdog tool can show several layers of data, including current fishing activity (white spots) and the boundaries of restricted marine areas (red outlines).
[This article originally appeared in print as "Commercial Overfishing."]
