Ocean Sentry
(From news.mainetoday.com)- Two wildlife-protection groups announced today they have filed a federal lawsuit to restore safeguards for endangered North Atlantic right whales, humpbacks, and fin whales. The delayed rules would have required lobstermen in Maine and other New England states to switch from using floating lines to connect traps to using sinking lines that are less likely to snag passing whales. The fisheries service agreed this month to delay the requirement from October until April, saying there are fewer traps in the water during the winter and less risk to whales. The suit says the delay violates the Marine Mammal Protection Act, the Endangered Species Act and other conservation laws, and asks the federal district court in Washington, D.C., to force the agency to reinstitute protections.
The wildlife groups said the gap in protections comes after years of delay and will put whales at increased risk for the next six months.
(From John Richardson )
