Oceans: Building Resilient Ecosystems

In response to a lawsuit brought by Earthjustice on behalf of a local conservation group and a Native Hawaiian cultural practitioner, the federal government has taken initial steps to protect a dwindling shark species that has roamed the oceans for millions of years. The parties have reached an agreement to halt further legal action in the case, as long as the government follows through on promised actions to formally recognize the species as “overfished.”

Oceanic Whitetip Chark Complaint for Declaratory and Injunctive Relief

On behalf of Defenders of Wildlife and the Center for Biological Diversity, we write to notify you of violations of section 7 of the Endangered Species Act (“ESA”), 16 U.S.C. § 1536, in connection with the National Marine Fisheries Service’s (“NMFS”) failure to reinitiate and complete consultations regarding the effects of its continued authorization of fisheries managed under the Atlantic Highly Migratory Species Fishery Management Plan (“HMS FMP”) on the oceanic whitetip shark and the giant manta ray. By failing to complete consultation, NMFS is failing to ensure that its activities do not jeopardize the continued existence of these species. Complying with the section 7 duty is particularly critical for these two species because NMFS has not extended substantive protections to the shark or manta ray under section 4(d) of the ESA.