Stop the Overkill

Congress could cast a vote that will decide the fate of all fish in US waters for years to come. To say that this vote is critical to the protection of our oceans would be an understatement. Unless Congress hears overwhelming support for the health of our oceans, the vote doesn�t look promising. Take Action >> Tell Congress that overfishing stinks!

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Dear Senators, Representative,

I am writing to urge you to take action to protect our nation�s oceans and the fishing communities that depend on them.  Nearly two years ago, the U.S. Commission on Ocean Policy recommended that �U.S. ocean and coastal resources should be managed to reflect the relationships among all ecosystem components, including human and nonhuman species and the environments in which they live.�  I am very concerned that a proposed bill to reauthorize the Magnuson-Stevens Act, which safeguards our country�s ocean resources, does not address this critical recommendation. As Congress considers reauthorizing the Magnuson-Stevens Act, I urge you to use your leadership to ensure that the bill requires regulators to fully implement an ecosystem-based approach to fisheries management.

As you consider the future of this important law and the ocean wildlife it protects, I would like to draw your attention to a new report by Greenpeace, the Alaska Oceans Program, Trustees for Alaska and the Center for Biological Diversity entitled �Rethinking Sustainability: A New Paradigm for Fisheries Management.� This detailed report examines the largest, and purportedly best managed, fishery in the U.S. � the Alaska pollock fishery � as a case study in the environmental, social and economic impact of managing fisheries without protecting the ecosystems on which those fisheries depend. I believe that this report has already been delivered to your Washington office for your review and is also available online at www.greenpeace.org/usa/rethinking.

The findings of Rethinking Sustainability are especially important because given that some people are recommending Alaska�s pollock fishery as a model for fisheries management nationwide. As this report makes clear, the single species management approach reflected in the �Alaska model� has failed to prevent overfishing of the target fish species and led to population declines among the seabirds and marine mammals that depend on these species for food.  This has had severe impacts on subsistence and small-boat fishermen, who put their lives at risk traveling far offshore in search of fish that were once abundant in coastal waters.

Please do not let this opportunity to save our oceans and fisheries pass.  I urge you to support a stronger version of the Magnuson-Stevens Act that ensures we manage ocean ecosystems responsibly.

"Sincerely," and your name and contact information will be added to the end of the letter.

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Stop the Overkill

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