Over-fishing and demand for shark fins has placed some shark species at risk of extinction. 233 shark species are currently on the IUCN Red List, with twelve classified as "critically endangered".
Shark populations are in vast decline all around the globe. In the Atlantic ocean, numbers have declined 50% over the last 30 years. Large coastal shark species, with tiger, scalloped hammerhead and dusky shark populations have declined by over 95%.
The increasing demand for shark fins as an expensive Asian delicacy used in soup has also placed pressure on shark populations because they are being fished faster than they can reproduce.
We ask the United States to place a moratorium on shark fishing before there is drastic and irreversable damage. Sharks have swimming the oceans for 400 million years and are a critical part of the ocean's ecosystem as they play a vital role in maintaining the health and balance of the oceans.
President Barack Obama
The White House
1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW
Washington, DC 20500
comments (202) 456-1111
switchboard (202) 456-1414
fax (202) 456-2461
e-mail:http://www.whitehouse.gov/contact
Secretary of the Interior
Ken Salazar
U.S. Department of the Interior
1849 C Street NW, Rm. 5665
Washington DC 20240
Phone: 202-208-3801
Email: feedback@ios.doi.gov
Secretary_of_the_Interior@ios.doi.gov
Over-fishing and demand for shark fins has placed some shark species at risk of extinction. 233 shark species are currently on the IUCN Red List, with twelve classified as "critically endangered".
Shark populations are in vast decline all around the globe. In the Atlantic ocean, numbers have declined 50% over the last 30 years. Large coastal shark species, with tiger, scalloped hammerhead and dusky shark populations have declined by over 95%.
The increasing demand for shark fins as an expensive Asian delicacy used in soup has also placed pressure on shark populations because they are being fished faster than they can reproduce.
We ask the United States to place a moratorium on shark fishing before there is drastic and irreversable damage. Sharks have swimming the oceans for 400 million years and are a critical part of the ocean's ecosystem as they play a vital role in maintaining the health and balance of the oceans.
