Saving Seafood

  • Home
  • News
    • Alerts
    • Conservation & Environment
    • Council Actions
    • Economic Impact
    • Enforcement
    • International & Trade
    • Law
    • Management & Regulation
    • Regulations
    • Nutrition
    • Opinion
    • Other News
    • Safety
    • Science
    • State and Local
  • News by Region
    • New England
    • Mid-Atlantic
    • South Atlantic
    • Gulf of Mexico
    • Pacific
    • North Pacific
    • Western Pacific
  • About
    • Contact Us
    • Fishing Terms Glossary

Everything You Know about Shark Conservation Is Wrong

May 25, 2022 โ€” More people than ever before are aware of the shark conservation crisis and want to help, which is great news. However, many well-intentioned people often donโ€™t know the true causes ofโ€”and solutions toโ€”this crisis, resulting in whatโ€™s at best wasted effort, and at worst harming what theyโ€™re trying to support. This conservation dilemma has inspired the last decade of my research and public science engagement. It also inspired my new book, Why Sharks Matter: A Deep Dive with the Worldโ€™s Most Misunderstood Predator, which synthesizes hundreds of research papers and reports to inform readers of the true threats to sharks and how we can begin to solve them. Only by following the evidence and seeking data-driven, sustainable solutions to overfishing can we save these fascinating and important creatures.

Many people believe that the largest or only threat to sharks is โ€œshark finningโ€: the practice of catching sharks, harvesting their fins and discarding the carcasses at sea. But this isnโ€™t the case and hasnโ€™t been for decades. Iโ€™ve seen some online petitions calling for bans on shark finning within Florida waters get tens of thousands of signatures. Apparently neither the petition creators nor the many signatories are aware that we already banned shark finning across the United States almost 30 years ago. While supporters of these petitions say that theyโ€™re โ€œraising awareness,โ€ it does not help anyone or anything to share incorrect information about what the problems are or how to solve them. Such feel-good solutions do nothing while diverting energy, media coverage and funding away from solutions that might really help.

Sustainable fisheries for sharks absolutely exist and are a vital part of livelihoods and food security in developing nations in the Global South. Sharks have relatively few offspring relatively infrequently, which complicates fisheries management, but the principle is the same as for any sustainable fishery: perform scientific research to learn how many sharks are present, and allow fishermen to take some of them (but not so many that the population collapses). In fact, 90 percent of surveyed shark scientists and 78 percent of surveyed shark conservation advocates prefer sustainable shark fisheries to total bans on fishing for sharks and trade in shark products!

If youโ€™ve never heard about sustainable shark fisheries before but have heard that the best way to save sharks is by banning the U.S. fin trade, itโ€™s probably because, for reasons that arenโ€™t very clear, such bans get much, much more media attention than science-based sustainable fisheries management. Many people are also influenced by provocative and misleading (to put it mildly) โ€œdocumentariesโ€ like 2021โ€™s Seaspiracy.

Read the full story at Scientific American

Rep. Walter Jones weighs in for North Carolina fishermen

November 2, 2017 โ€” WASHINGTON โ€” The following was released by the office of Congressman Walter Jones:

Congressman Walter B. Jones (NC-3) is moving to help Eastern North Carolina fishermen who could be hurt by legislation pending before Congress. The bills threaten Americaโ€™s domestic shark fisheries, and a significant piece of those fisheries is in Eastern North Carolina. They are sustainably managed and help support the economy in coastal North Carolina and other small fishing communities around the country.

The bills โ€“ H.R. 1456 and S. 793 โ€“ purport to be an attempt to stop the practice of shark finning (i.e. the process of removing fins at sea and discarding the shark). They seek to do so by banning the sale of fins, even those harvested legally here in the United States. However well-intentioned the bill sponsors may be, the fact is that shark finning has been illegal in the United States for many years. Advocates for the legislation have countered with the false allegation that the practice is still widespread. They publicly claimed that NOAA Fisheries had 500 cases of shark finning over the last several years. That number sounded impossibly high to Congressman Jones, so in August he asked NOAA Fisheries for the real number of federal shark finning violations assessed over the past five years. According to NOAA, the real number is not 500, it is 22. The Associated Press recently ran a story correcting the record on the โ€˜fake newsโ€™ claims distributed by the billโ€™s supporters. You can find that story HERE.

โ€œIf foreign countries are failing to manage their shark populations appropriately, they should change their ways,โ€ said Congressman Jones. โ€œBut we should not put U.S. fishermen out of business in the process.โ€

This week, Congressman Jones urged U.S. Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross to join him in opposing the legislation. The Commerce Department is home to the regulatory agency โ€“ NOAA Fisheries โ€“ which manages the domestic shark fisheries. As Congressman Jones pointed out to Secretary Ross in a letter, federal law mandates that the domestic shark fishery be managed sustainably. According to renowned shark scientist, Dr. Robert E. Heuter of Floridaโ€™s Mote Marine Lab, America has โ€œone of the best systems in the world for shark fisheries management and conservation.โ€ The proof can be seen in NOAA Fisheries own data. NOAA Fisheriesโ€™ 2015 coastal shark survey captured and tagged โ€œmore than 2,800 sharks, the most in the surveyโ€™s 29-year history.โ€ The leader of the survey stated that NOAA Fisheries has โ€œseen an increase in the number of sharks in every survey since 2001,โ€ and the agency called the survey results โ€œvery good news for shark populations.โ€

โ€œMr. Secretary, you know how important good jobs are to Americaโ€™s future,โ€ said Congressman Jones. โ€œThe sustainably managed U.S. shark fishery helps many hard working people in Eastern North Carolina and across the country support their families and their communities. For the sake of the American fishermen who make this country great, I respectfully ask you to oppose these bills.โ€

Congressman Jones has long been a strong supporter and advocate for Eastern North Carolina fishermen.

Additional information on Jonesโ€™ backing of North Carolina fishermen can be found here.

 

Recent Headlines

  • Trump reinstating commercial fishing in northeast marine monument
  • Natural toxin in ocean results in restrictions on Pacific sardine fishing off South Coast
  • MAINE: Maine lobstermen remain mighty political force despite shrinking numbers
  • HAWAII: Ahi labeling bill waiting on governorโ€™s signature
  • Trump administration strikes hard at offshore wind
  • USDA awards USD 2.3 million in pollock contracts, seeks more bids on pollock, salmon
  • Trump to reopen Northeast Canyons to commercial fishing
  • US, China agree to 90-day pause on high tariffs

Most Popular Topics

Alaska Aquaculture ASMFC Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission BOEM California China Climate change Coronavirus COVID-19 Donald Trump groundfish Gulf of Maine Gulf of Mexico Hawaii Illegal fishing IUU fishing Lobster Maine Massachusetts Mid-Atlantic National Marine Fisheries Service National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration NEFMC New Bedford New England New England Fishery Management Council New Jersey New York NMFS NOAA NOAA Fisheries North Atlantic right whales North Carolina North Pacific offshore energy Offshore wind Pacific right whales Salmon South Atlantic Western Pacific Whales wind energy Wind Farms

Daily Updates & Alerts

Enter your email address to receive daily updates and alerts:
  • This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.
Tweets by @savingseafood

Copyright ยฉ 2025 Saving Seafood ยท WordPress Web Design by Jessee Productions

Notifications