February 21, 2020 — Passing state or federal bans on sales of now-legally harvested shark fins would unnecessarily penalize U.S. fishermen and have little impact on the illicit global fin trade, said Chris Oliver, assistant administrator for the National Marine Fisheries Service, in an unusual position statement.
“The United States has some of the best managed shark fisheries in the world. Our laws and regulations prevent overfishing while maximizing commercial fishing opportunities and the economic value of our shark fisheries,” Oliver said in the statement issued Feb. 18. “Part of our science-based management is allowing fishermen to sell both the meat and fins of sustainably harvested sharks.”
Sentiment among NOAA officials has long been that U.S. fin sale bans — sought by environmental and conservation groups who want to end the practice of finning live sharks at sea — would not benefit shark management in U.S. waters. As campaigns for state- and federal-level fin sale bans continue the agency is becoming more outspoken about its position.
Oliver’s statement comes as Florida state lawmakers move closer to imposing a ban on the legal shark fin trade. Advocates say the state is a center for U.S. shark landings, and their avowed goal is to reduce fishing mortality on sharks. A bill for a federal sales ban passed the House of Representatives in November 2019 but remains bottled up in the Senate.