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COASTAL COMMISSION APPROVES NEW SEA TURTLE PROTECTION RESOLUTION Four of the world's seven species of sea turtles frequent the California coast and all are listed as endangered or threatened under the US Endangered Species Act. These include the Olive Ridley, Loggerhead, Leatherback and the Green turtle. These turtles migrate between California and Central America, Japan, Indonesia and Mexico. According to the National Academy of Sciences, shrimp trawling kills 150,000 turtles every year. A relatively simple device called a turtle excluder device (TEC) can be placed at the mouth of shrimping nets that blocks turtles from entering the nets. In 1995 the US Endangered Species Act was amended to require all nations exporting shrimp to the US to utilize TECs. Unfortunately, a World Trade Organization (WTO) panel ruled that environmental protections cannot interfere with free trade and the US State Department responded by revising the Turtle-Shrimp law to weaken its provisions. The resolution passed by the Coastal Commission states in the strongest terms possible the Commission's commitment to conservation of sea turtles and urges members of the public and responsible agencies to do likewise. You can see the resolution here.
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