End of the Line – Worksheet 1

Introduction
The End of the Line assignment consists of three parts, each of which forms one study unit (approx.
60 mins or a bit more).
This is Part 1.

Introduction to The End of the Line

This resource looks at the effects of over fishing on the world’s oceans. A range of activities
including key scene analysis and explore issues such as the impact of technology on the ocean, the
impact on human populations locally, nationally and globally, and possible solutions.

Imagine an ocean without fish. Imagine your meals without seafood. Imagine the global
consequences. This is the future if we do not stop, think and act. The End Of The Line is the world's
first major documentary about the devastating effect of overfishing and examines the imminent
extinction of bluefin tuna, brought on by increasing western demand for sushi; the impact on marine
life resulting in huge overpopulation of jellyfish; and the profound implications of a future world
with no fish that would bring certain mass starvation.

Filmed over two years, The End of the Line follows the investigative reporter Charles Clover as he
confronts politicians and celebrity restaurateurs, who exhibit little regard for the damage they are
doing to the oceans.

Part 1:
Listening for Information and Language Work
Assignment:
Go to http://www.filmeducation.org/theendoftheline/key_scene_analysis.html
and do the following 4 listening tasks:
Cod Overfishing
Technology
Senegal
Fish Farming

The fifth clip, Marine Reserves, forms part of the second worksheet.

You can go to each of these tasks by clicking on the headline in the upper right of the page.
Use this worksheet as a guideline. The basic questions will appear next to the video (the video can be
toggled to full screen; some parts have English subtitles). I have added some questions of my own.

Type your answers to each question on this worksheet. Mark your answers in a different colour. Then
upload the worksheet on Learnweb. Cheers.
Key Scene 1 - Cod Overfishing “We’re goin’ fishin’!”
Before watching:

 Pay attention to the pronunciation of Newfoundland

 Where is Newfoundland?
 Spelling: How do you write thousands (in numbers) in English? e.g. ten thousand = ?

Watch and answer the following questions:

1. What was the main source of income for Newfoundland?

Fishing

2. What significant event occurred in 1992?

John Crossbie, the Fisheries Minister of Newfoundland, imposed a moratorium on fishing.
3. Explain the term 'moratorium' in the context used in the clip. The narrator uses another word for
moratorium. What is it?
“Moratorium” is a political term that means a ban on a specific action for a defined period of time. In
this case fishing at the shores of Newfoundland was not allowed from 1992 to 1994.
4. Why do you think this moratorium was brought in? What were the consequences?
As it seems, fishing has always been a fundamental part of Newfoundland's economy. Therefore the
population of sih has been in decline especially since modern technology allowed for real prey on
fish. In summary, local fish populations are under threat by now.
The moratorium was passed so that future generations would have access to an intact environment as
fish are not only a core part of the local ecosystem but for the economy as well. An extinction of all
fish would be an absolute disaster in both economical and ecological means.
The consequences were that about 40,000 fishermen lost their jobs, which is painful in the short run.
But if fishing in this extent had continued, all of them would have lost their jobs anyway since there
would have been no fish.
5. Historically why did people migrate to Newfoundland?
Obviously, the fishing industry in Newfoundland was big and attractive enough to foreign people so
they decided to settle over to Canada.
6. “There is this historical ingrained element…” – What is the difference between ‘historical’ and
‘historic’?

Historical is an adjective that describes things that have to with history and science whereas historic
means that something is so important that it will be remembered in the future.

Key Scene 2 - Technology

1. How could you describe the impact of hi-tech fishing vessels on the 'world catch'?

The usage of advanced technology will lead to a bigger catch for sure. As the following examples
and numbers suggest the increase caused by hi-tech improved fishing is far too much for the
worldwide fish population.
2. Did you find the scale of the technology employed (lines, nets, monitoring etc.) surprising?
Partly. When they said that today's capacities wuold be enough to fish the current worldwide fish
pupulation for four times I was completely shocked.
3. Think about this statement: 'The thing is we're too good right now. Technologically not a single
hunted animal on this earth has a chance.' (Professor Jeffrey Hutchings)
What evidence does the sequence/film provide to support this statement?
They mention several instruments and techniques that are used to locate fish and to finally catch it.
Another point that is brought up is the raw incrase of vehicles and tools for fishing which will reduce
survival chances of individuals.
4. “The might of the fishing armoury has grown exponentially…” – How could you replace ‘might’
here?

The proportions of the fishing armoury have grown exponentially...

Key Scene 3 – Senegal

Before watching:

 Pay attention to the pronunciation of ‘drought’

 Grammar: use of the passive voice: “Meanwhile on the same shoreline money is being made.” In
English, the passive voice is used when the subject of the sentence is unknown or unimportant.

Watch and answer the following questions:

1. How many of the global population identify fish as a key part of their diet?

1.2 billion people

2. Find out which are the main Senegalese cities that can be described as costal.
Dakar the capital of Senegal
3. How much of the 'world catch' is returned dead to the sea?
About 10 %.
4. What differences in technology are there between the Senegalese fisherman and those from
foreign fleets?
- size: boats from foreign fleets are bigger which causes them to have bigger capacities
-range: foreign fleets can fish even in a wider distance from the coast
5. What connections are made to the local, national and global experiences?
Think about the relationship between overfishing, and the choice that people like Adama face
regarding emigration.

The clip describes a system where national institutions sell fishing rights to foreign companies that
are mainly from Europe. These companies use their modern fleets to fish enormous catches which
are sold in Europe to cheap prices. Meanwhile the ecosystem of West Africa is destroyed by the sheer
amount of fish that is caught and a big protion of local people has to face severe economic problems
as fishing plays a big role in the local economy. As the African nations are underdeveloped there is
no perspective for local fishermen that can no longer live from their catches leaving them only the
option to move to a different place, possibly Europe because its the closest most wealthy region. If a
winner of this system had to be named it would be Europe as it grants easy and cheap access to fish.
The losers are the local people and even there governments despite them getting some money for
their fishing rights. It is quite likely that in the long run these nations could accumulate more money
if the could use their fishing rights on their own.
Key Scene 4 - Fish Farming
1. What do you think the attractions of fish farming are?

It removes the need of big fleets for fishing purposes at least for the farmer and it is also easier to
predict your turnover. Another factor may be that it is healthy to the ecosystem at fist glance as
farming is usually assumed to be process that produces something. So people might believe that it
reduces the pressure on the global fish populations.
2. What is used to feed farmed fish?
A product made out of fish: fish meal.
3. What are the potential consequences of fish farming?
As fish farming requires other fish to feed the farmed ones it will probably increase the demand for
fish leading to even bigger catch rates since fish farming consumes more fish than it produces.
4. The voiceover says that 'On average five kilos of anchovy makes only one kilo of salmon.' Could
you describe this process as sustainable?
Under current conditions it is sustainable because there is a demand for rare or protected (?) species
of fish that make good prices.
5. “We’ve reached the buffers.” What does this mean?
Fish can be seen as a regenerative resource: As long as your catch rates don't exceed a certain limit
the population stays constant in numbers. So it is possible to achieve catch a constant number of fish
every year. If your catch rates are above this limit however the population will decline which will
result in an increase of caught fish in the beginning but then in a reduction as the population gets
smaller. Nevertheless, recovery is still possible by reducing the catch rates accordingly so the fish
population would grow. Reaching the buffers probably means that we are nearing a point of no return
whrere the inflicted damage will too much to recover from.
6. Why do you think Patricia recommends that we eat small fish like the anchovy?

Smaller fish are probably lower in the food chain. The food chain can be seen as a flow of energy. In
the beginning plants absorb energy in the form of sunlight to build up carbohydrates. If an animal
eats the plant it will gain all the carbohydrates stored within the plant that the animal can actually use
which means that during the transition from chain link to chain link energy is lost. This is why it is
ecological more efficient to consume fish that are lower in the food chain.