Oceana has filed a lawsuit in the US District Court of Northern California challenging the National Marine Fisheries Service’s (NMFS) approval of Amendment 13 to the Coastal Pelagic Species Fishery Management Plan (FMP) for fisheries that take place off California, Oregon and Washington.
Oceana, represented by Earthjustice, charged NMFS with failing to protect key species, such as Pacific sardine and anchovy, which serve as the base of the ocean food web.
The lawsuit claims NMFS fails to prevent overfishing, fails to account for the species’ ecological role when setting catch limits and fails to adequately analyze the implications of their actions.
In a press release, Oceana reminds that in 2006 Congress reauthorized and amended the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act to include new requirements designed to prevent overfishing and foster more precautionary, scientifically sound management of fisheries. NMFS then revised the guidelines that govern how fishery managers set optimum catch levels and other measures to achieve these goals.
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