Target: Howard Lutnick, U.S. Secretary of Commerce
Goal: Do not deregulate fishing restrictions around federally protected marine monument.
A majestic half a million square mile expanse of ocean, islands, underwater mountains, and coral reefs – and what is supposed to be a federally protected monument – is in imminent danger due to another careless dictate from the president’s administration. The Pacific Islands Heritage Marine National Monument hosts vibrant and diverse ecosystems teeming with sharks, whales, dolphins, turtles, fish, and visiting seabirds. Many of these animals are critically endangered but have found a safe haven in a part of the world largely unmarred by man…perhaps unmarred no more.
President Donald Trump has ordered his Secretary of Commerce to reverse protective regulations that kept commercial fishing out of the vicinity. Aside from the obvious impacts of upending ecosystem balance and disturbing already-fragile coral reefs, the fishing will put marine animals like turtles and sharks at risk of becoming collateral damage. Sharks are in particular danger from bycatch. These predators play an integral role in cycling nutrients, controlling disease, and neutralizing invasive species. One concerned conservationist bluntly assessed the impact: “If you open up a section of ocean that has all of these very long-lived, slow-growing sharks, you can decimate 100 years of conservation in almost 15 minutes of fishing because it takes so long for those sharks to rebound and regrow their populations.”
Sign the petition below to demand the secretary stand against a destructive proposal that will have long-lasting environmental and economic ramifications.
PETITION LETTER:
Dear Secretary Lutnick,
The opening of Pacific Islands Heritage Marine National Monument to industrial fishing interests is not just an environmental threat. Long-term, it is an economic threat. Federally protected marine regions have given a proven boost to fishing prospects far away from the areas in question. Intrusion, on the other hand, will wreak havoc on ecosystems and seriously weaken fishing opportunities over time. And down the line, the effects will trickle down to consumers in the form of higher prices.
The argument that fishermen are burdened with further travel because of regulations is flawed. The regions are already remote, and less than one percent of commercial fishing takes place in these isolated areas. But if this proposal is pushed through, illegal fishers will be emboldened and will pose another serious threat to legitimate industrial interests.
Please think about the present and the future and do not endorse a decision that will offer no benefit but plentiful risk in the long run. Guardrails, after all, exist so we do not crash and burn.
Sincerely,
[Your Name Here]
Photo Credit: USFWS Pacific Region
