Lawmakers Ban Shark Finning In A Last-Minute Victory

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LAWMAKERS PASS SHARK FINNING BAN AS SESSION ENDS
12/21/10 � Kinship Circle supporters asked legislators to crack down on shark finning, a brutal practice in which fishermen sever dorsal fins and dump mutilated sharks into the sea to bleed to death. The Shark Conservation Act of 2009 was quickly approved in the U.S. House of Representatives. Nearly a year later, the Senate has unanimously passed a similar measure to plug loopholes that allow shark finning in West Coast Pacific waters. Lawmakers scored a bipartisan victory for shark conservation by quickly pushing a final version through the House. A universal ban on amputation of shark fins (an ingredient for shark fin soup, an Asian delicacy) now heads to President Obama�s desk.

Under the new law, boats must land sharks with fins intact and nonfishing vessels are prohibited from transferring detached fins. Shark finning was already illegal in Atlantic and Gulf of Mexico waters. Yet loopholes let Pacific fishermen catch 1.2 million pounds of shark in 2009, NOAA says. Finning has imperiled populations, with just 3,500 Great Whites free in the wild. It has triggered the deterioration of ocean ecosystems.

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The Honorable Representative
U.S. House of Representatives
Washington, D.C. 20510

The Honorable Senators
The U.S. Senate
U.S. Capitol Building
Washington, D.C. 20510

Dear Senators and Representative,

I am pleased to learn the U.S. Senate has unanimously passed the Shark Conservation Act of 2009, a measure to plug loopholes that left shark finning legal in Pacific waters off the West Coast. Fishermen sever dorsal fins and dump mutilated sharks into the sea to bleed to death.

The Act universally bans amputation of shark fins � sought for shark fin soup, an Asian delicacy. It mandates that all boats land sharks with fins intact and it forbids nonfishing vessels to transfer detached fins.

If you are among those Congress members who supported this legislation, I commend you. I urge Senators and Representatives in conference committee to swiftly iron out the bill's final version so that the President can sign the Shark Conservation Act into law.

While shark finning was already illegal in Atlantic and Gulf Mexico waters, loopholes allowed negligent fishing in the Pacific. Finning has imperiled shark populations, with just 3,500 Great Whites free in the wild. It has triggered the deterioration of other ocean species, including hammerheads and makos.

It is just plain cruel to haul living sharks on to decks, slice off their fins, and toss them back to bleed to death or become defenseless prey at sea. The Shark Conservation Act helps end this crime against nature and promote conservation worldwide.

Thank you,

YOUR FULL NAME
ADDRESS, CITY, STATE
COUNTRY

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Comments: USA CITIZENS ONLY: Look up contact information for the elected U.S. Senators and Rep in your district. 1) To find your federal Senators and Representative, try: http://www.Congress.org http://www.vote-smart.org/ http://www.senate.gov http://www.house.gov 2) Copy our sample letter and paste it into an email. 3) Change some words. Sign your name, address, country. 4) Copy emails addresses found for your federal legislators. Paste them in TO: line of email. Hit send. OR, use the contact form on your legislator�s website. Paste modified sample letter into it. Click submit.