Tag Archives: California’s Department of Fish and Wildlife
Lawsuit Launched to End Whale, Sea Turtle Entanglements in California Dungeness Crab Gear
The Center for Biological Diversity today filed a formal notice of intent to sue California’s state wildlife agency for failing to prevent commercial Dungeness crab gear from entangling, injuring and killing threatened and endangered humpback whales, blue whales and sea turtles. California’s Department of Fish and Wildlife authorizes and manages operation of the fishery, which last year entangled at least 21 endangered or threatened whales, contributing to a third straight record-breaking year for entanglements along the U.S. West Coast. An endangered leatherback sea turtle was also caught in commercial Dungeness crab gear in 2016. Today’s notice letter notes that the Department’s failure to protect imperiled whales and sea turtles from entanglements in crab gear violates the federal Endangered Species Act. click here to read press release 20:47
Ninth Circuit Skewers Calif. Commercial Fishing License Fee Scheme
A challenge to California’s scheme of 
for commercial fishing licenses went before the Ninth Circuit on Tuesday. Lead plaintiff Kevin Marilley filed the case in 2013, seeking to represent a class of commercial herring fishermen who are not California residents but who wish to make their living there. At the time of the lawsuit, nonresident fees for commercial fishing licenses and for fishing vessel registration permits were three times higher than the fees California residents paid. Read the rest here 16:58
