Tag Archives: Whale Legislation
Governor Brown signs Whale Legislation, but the Enviros are never satisfied.
California Gov. Jerry Brown announced Friday that he signed legislation meant to bring down the record numbers of whales getting caught in fishing gear meant for Dungeness crabs, causing unknown numbers of the entangled mammals to drown or starve. The Democratic governor approved the bill that allows fishermen to collect abandoned and lost crab pots — the cage-like contraptions used to catch the crustaceans — in the off-season for a bounty, paid for by those who lost the gear. Crab fishermen joined environmental groups in backing the legislation after federal agencies logged 61 reports of entangled whales off the West Coast last year,,, Conservation groups have urged state and federal agencies to do more, including closing some areas with high numbers of whales to crab fishing. Read the story here 12:32