What Can We Do

Dear Jeanie,
The federal government is once again proposing to allow longline fishing for swordfish in the waters off California and Oregon. Longlining, in which a single vessel can lay out over 60 miles of line and 1,000 hooks at a time, is one of the most destructive fishing practices ever invented. In addition to depleting the oceans of the targeted swordfish and tuna, longlines hook, entangle, and kill tens of thousands of seabirds, sea turtles, marine mammals and sharks. The critically endangered Pacific leatherback sea turtle has been reduced from over 100,000 nesting females to fewer than 3,000 over the past 25 years, primarily due to the impacts of longline fishing.
Swordfish longlining has been banned in waters off the West Coast since 2004, following a successful lawsuit by the Center for Biological Diversity. Just last summer, the Center led opposition to a proposal to allow an experimental longline fishery in these waters, which are crucial to the Pacific leatherback. Even though the California Coastal Commission has already denied that proposal before, the National Marine Fisheries Service and the permit applicant are once again pushing to allow longline fishing in these waters.
Please let the agency know that you oppose the introduction of this deadly fishing gear to the West Coast by submitting comments on the proposed fishing permit.
Please take a moment to help protect our coral reefs by sending a letter to federal officials. Your action can make a difference.

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