Fishing for Trouble: Stop Pombo's Overfishing Rollback Bill
Fishing is one of America's oldest
industries, and it remains an important part of life in many
communities. But without healthy fish populations, those
ecosystems and jobs are in jeopardy. Of the myriad threats to
our oceans, one of the most serious is aggressive overfishing.
Before the passage of the
Magnuson-Stevens Fisheries Conservation and Management Act of
1976 (MSA) the vast wealth our fisheries were open to anyone that
wanted to harvest them. And overfishing ran rampant. Passage of
the MSA has prevented many species of fish being over harvested.
The Senate has recently approved
changes to the MSA aimed at strengthening the Act and rebuilding
fish stocks while protecting jobs in the commercial fishing
industry. But the integrity of the bill is being challenged by a
handful of anti-conservationists in the House of Representatives.
Now Rep. Richard Pombo is pushing
a bill that would roll back many of the provisions of current law
that prevent overfishing. Pombo's bill would restrict public and
scientific debate on fisheries management plans, let the fishing
industry off the hook for exceeding annual catch limits, and add
more extensions to the 10 year deadline to rebuild diminished
fish stocks.
Tell your member of Congress to
save our nation's fishing legacy by opposing the bill offered by
Richard Pombo.
Fishing is one of Americas oldest industries, and for coastal communities it remains and important part of their livelihood. But without healthy fish populations these ecosystems and jobs are in jeopardy.
Before the passage of the Magnuson-Stevens Fisheries Conservation and Management Act of 1976 (MSA) the vast wealth our fisheries were open to anyone that wanted to harvest them. And overfishing ran rampant. Passage of the MSA has prevented many species of fish being over harvested.
But Rep. Richard Pombo is pushing a bill that would roll back many of the provisions of current law that prevent overfishing. Pombos bill would restrict public and scientific debate on fisheries management plans, let the fishing industry off the hook for exceeding annual catch limits, and add more extensions to the 10 year deadline to rebuild diminished fish stocks.
Please oppose this legislation. We should be working to save our nation's fishing legacy, not challenging the integrity of a successful law.
Sincerely,
/Your Name/
/Your Address/
