NATIONAL FISHERMAN • April 21, 2020
A federal court ruling April 9 invalidating NOAA’s 2014 biological opinion on right whale interaction with lobster gear hangs like a sword of Damocles over the industry. NOAA’s position is that vertical lines used by lobster catchers don’t jeopardize right whales. The plaintiffs argued that he agency failed to include an “incidental take statement” in its biological opinion, thereby violating both the Endangered Species Act and the Marine Mammal Protection Act. NOAA maintained that an ITS was not required. NOAA should be tasked with determining exactly where gear entanglements are taking place, and with what kind of gear. We’re not helping whales if we protect them from encounters that aren’t taking place.