Aquatic food sources are a massive industry for the world's food supply. Around 140 tonnes of fish or shellfish are caught or farmed each year (95 caught, 45 farmed). Fish are an incredibly valuable resource as they are renewable as long as humans leave enough breeding stock for the population to regrow. Continuous overfishing could lead to the extinction (or commercial extinction) of a species. (For an example of overfishing, see Canada's east coast cod situation). This has been a growing issue for the fishery industry as modern commercial fishing methods have become so efficient that many species are suffering this fate.

One solution for this issue is aquaculture. This is the farming of aquatic life such as fish, shellfish and plants. While civilizations have been recorded for the use of aquaculture since 2000 BC, it has seen rapid growth in the last several decades as a sustainable equivalent to fishing. Over one third of all fish and shellfish eaten globally is sourced from aquaculture.

Water Pollution

Water is perhaps humanities most valuable resources yet it too is our most mismanaged. Only 2.6% of all water is fresh water that is fit for human consumption and the majority of that is confined in icecaps and glaciers. This could lead to a water crisis by the year 2025.

Some of the main causes of water pollution include agricultural runoff (fertilizer and pesticides), sewage, oil, and radioactive waste. Sewage pollution is a problem in developing countries where they don't have access to sanitary conditions, but also in developed countries when water isn't treated properly before it runs into waterways. Litter is perhaps the most serious problem today. The Great Pacific Garbage Patch is an island of litter in the pacific ocean and a great example of how humans are polluting their most precious resource.