Tag Archives: Port of Savannah
Cargo vessels endanger North Atlantic right whales off Port of Savannah
Cargo vessels operating off the increasingly busy Port of Savannah are the primary violators of speed limits intended to protect the critically endangered right whales,,, The report comes as North American Right Whales again experience a declining population. NOAA lastest report on conservation efforts, issued December 2020, cites two leading causes of injuries and death as: A vessel strike, meaning the whales’ bodies may be sliced or chopped by ships’ propellers; and getting tangled in fishing gear,,, Canada has joined the U.S. in issuing rules intended to protect right whales from ship collisions. >click to read< 08:41
Port of Savannah leads in the export of shark fins
For the last three years the port of Savannah has been the U.S. leader in the export of shark fins, a legal but controversial trade item used to make shark fin soup, a delicacy in parts of Asia. Federal fisheries data show that although no shark fin was exported from Savannah in 2013, the trade here jumped in the following years from 18,444 pounds in 2014 to 25,765 pounds in 2015. That amounts to about $1.2 million in shark fins over the two years. Last year through November the export amounted to 19,171 pounds, valued at $559,845. In each case the shark fins were shipped to Hong Kong. Oceana is now advocating a nationwide ban on the shark fin trade. Not all shark lovers agree. Shark researcher Chris Fischer, a founder of Ocearch and a leader of its expeditions to catch and satellite tag great white sharks, said shutting down trade here will merely create a bigger opportunity for unmanaged fisheries elsewhere. Read the story here 12:33
