Pass the Shark Conservation Act Today!
- by: Care2
- recipient: Senators from North Carolina and Virginia
Fishing interests in Virginia and North Carolina are lobbying to exempt certain sharks from a law designed to ban the cruel practice of shark finning. We need your help to stop them!
An estimated 73 million sharks around the world are killed every year primarily for their fins, which are used in the Asian delicacy shark fin soup. Too often, fishermen slice off the valuable fins and discard the bodies at sea.
The Shark Conservation Act, introduced by Senator John Kerry (D-MA), would ban removal of shark fins at sea, close other loopholes in the current U.S. shark finning law and promote the conservation of sharks internationally.
The time for action is running out. Please let your Senator know that passing the Shark Conservation Act is a priority -- with no exceptions.
Dear Senator [Name],
Please support strong conservation measures for all sharks in the U.S. and mid-Atlantic waters.
The Shark Conservation Act (S. 850) will be moving in the Senate this fall. But in order to be effective, this law must protect all sharks from being finned at sea. Exempting one species opens the door to other weakening amendments, which would drastically limit the law's ability to stop finning and rebuild shark populations.
Sharks are in trouble: More than half of highly migratory sharks are overexploited or depleted, and up to 73 million sharks are killed each year -- mostly for their fins. The United States should lead the world in shark conservation by passing laws that prohibit shark finning, or removing the fins at sea and tossing the rest of the shark overboard. Experts agree that the only real way to ensure finning is not happening in U.S. waters is to require that sharks are landed with their fins naturally attached. As the ocean's top predator, sharks are needed for healthy and diverse marine ecosystems.
Among other provisions, the Shark Conservation Act (S.850) would require that sharks are landed with their fins attached, and would also encourage other nations to pass similar measures. Please help ensure that this law protects all sharks from the cruel practice of finning, not just some.
[Your comment here]
I urge you to support S.850 in its current form, and prioritize passage of the legislation before the end of the year.
