Week In Review – August 22, 2014 – Sea Save Foundation
1. Sea World Is Grounded: Stock Continues to Plummet As Sales Hit Record Low
2. Fishermen Lobby to Shoot Thousands of Sea Birds
3. New Zealand Bans Shark Finning
4. Florida Representative Steve Southerland Seeks to Block Clean Water Act Rule
5. Spiny Dogfish Sharks May Be Awarded Some Federal Protection
6. Ecotourism Promotes Shark Conservation
7. Sharkageddon! Scientists Concur: Most Inaccurate Shark Week Program Thus Far
1. Sea World Is Grounded: Stock Continues to Plummet As Sales Hit Record Lows
According to The Huffington Post, Sea World stock is down 45% from last year, partly due to awareness efforts ranging from the launch of the expose film Blackfish to successful petitions demanding that Sea World stop current practices.
The public has a voice, and currently it is being heard.
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2. Fishermen Lobby to Shoot Thousands of Sea Birds
Conflicting interests are coming to a head in Oregon. Fishermen are trying to fill their quotas of salmon, and hungry cormorants are competing for the catch. Butch Smith, a fisherman, said that killing thousands of the birds “is the one thing out of anything else we can do to recover salmon fastest.”
Stan Senner, Director of Bird Conservation at the National Audubon Society, argues that killing off some of the cormorant colony, which makes up one-quarter of the birds’ western population, “is an extreme measure, totally inappropriate.”
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3. New Zealand Bans Shark Finning
New Zealand’s conservation minister, Nick Smith, hopes that a recent law prohibiting shark finning will fortify the country’s reputation for sustainability and environmental protection.
New Zealand joins a global movement. “We are chipping away at unsustainable shark finning one nation at a time,” commented Sea Save Foundation’s Give ‘Em the Fin campaign manager, Jay Martinez.
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4. Florida Representative Steve Southerland Seeks to Block Clean Water Act Rule
Citing federal overreach and the need for economic recovery, Rep. Steve Southerland (FL) has filed a bill called the Waters of the United States Regulatory Overreach Protection Act (H.R. 5078). This bill seeks to prohibit implementation of the Clean Water Act Rule.
“Southerland’s legislation is a misguided reaction to the proposed rule,” said Vicki Tschinkel, a former secretary for Florida’s Department of Environmental Protection and a coalition member, in a statement. “This legislation intervenes in the middle of the public commenting process and raises suspicion that the industry groups demonstrating today do not want to allow citizens to voice their support of our natural resources. Clean water depends on clear standards.”
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5. Spiny Dogfish Sharks May Be Awarded Some Federal Protection
A federal law may soon be passed in the United States that will require all spiny dogfish sharks be brought to shore with their fins attached. This regulation is already in place in Maine, New Jersey, Delaware, Virginia, South Carolina, Georgia and Florida.
The regulation is important because it deters fishermen from engaging in the unsustainable practice of finning.
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6. Ecotourism Promotes Shark Conservation
Swimming with sharks might be the best way to save them. Evidence continues to flood in that the best way to curb shark killing is by boosting local economies.
If a living shark brings in more money than a dead one, we will continue to see global communities shifting from careers in shark fishing to tourism.
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7. Sharkageddon! Scientists Concur: Most Inaccurate Shark Week Program Thus Far
Sit with a group of more than 15 scientists as they watch an evening of Shark Week programming.
This article explores and disputes a series of inaccuracies woven throughout “Sharkageddon” factual programming.
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