Just months after Mercy For Animals and the Ban Death Nets
coalition released shocking undercover footage exposing the
commercial driftnet fishing industry, California lawmakers passed Senate bill
1017 to phase out the use of the nets in the state.
Authored by Senator Ben Allen (D-Santa
Monica), along with over 15 co-authors, the bill is set to phase out the use of
swordfish driftnets over a four-year period after the creation of a transition
program, funded through public-private partnerships, to assist fishers who will
be required to stop using the nets.
The bill passed nearly unanimously in both the
state senate and assembly. Governor Brown has until September 30 to sign this
historic legislation into law.
In a statement, Senator Ben Allen said:
These mile-long nets are deadly and destructive. Finally we have found a way to phase out their use and transition to a more humane alternative—without harming the commercial fishing industry in the process. This is a significant win for our ocean and for the California economy. We look forward to the governor signing it into law.
California is the last remaining U.S. state to
allow driftnets, which have already been phased out off the U.S. East Coast and
banned by Oregon and Washington states, the United Nations, and countries
around the world.
Driftnets used in federal waters off the coast
of California can stretch over a mile long and hang up to 100 feet deep into
the ocean, indiscriminately trapping and killing numerous animals each year. It’s estimated
that for every one targeted fish caught by the driftnet fishing industry, seven
other marine animals are killed.
In the past decade alone, thousands of marine
animals have been killed by the few remaining driftnet boats operating off
California’s coast, including endangered and protected animals, such as sperm
whales and sea turtles. The cruelty is unimaginable.
MFA’s hidden-camera
exposé shows workers repeatedly bludgeoning sharks over the head
with a baseball bat, sharks viciously cut apart and stabbed while still alive
and able to feel pain, and animals left to slowly suffocate on the decks of
commercial fishing boats.
See for yourself.
SB 1017’s passage marks major progress for
oceans and the animals who live in them, but we’re not finished yet. MFA is closely
following the progression of this bill, and we’re going to need your help to
get it signed by Governor Brown. If you live in California, please
contact the governor today. And if you live outside California,
please tell your
representatives in Congress to support a federal bill to ban cruel driftnets.
Remember, the best way to protect fish and other
marine animals is to leave them off your plate. Learn more about switching to a
compassionate
plant-based diet to prevent cruelty to all animals used for food.
Then check out Gardein’s fishless filets and crabless
cakes, and click here for compassionate sea-inspired recipes.