President Donald Trump’s govt order to spice up the U.S. industrial fishing business drew reward from industrial fishing teams and condemnation from environmental organizations who mentioned they concern chopping rules will hurt fish populations which have already dwindled in some areas of the oceans.
The order represents a dramatic shift in federal coverage on fishing in U.S. waters by prioritizing industrial fishing pursuits over efforts to permit the fish provide to extend.
The president described his resolution as “an easy one” that may enhance the U.S. industrial fishing business by peeling again rules and opening up harvesting in beforehand protected areas.
“The United States should be the world’s dominant seafood leader,” he mentioned Thursday, citing the nation’s seafood commerce deficit, which is greater than $20 billion.
Some environmental teams cited the significance of counting on the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Administration Act, which has guided U.S. fishery administration for almost 50 years and was meant to fight overfishing. The variety of fish shares on the federal overfished checklist grew from 40 in 2013 to 47 in 2023; conservationists mentioned they concern that quantity will develop with weakened rules.
“These executive orders don’t loosen red tape – they unravel the very safety net that protects our oceans, our economy, and our seafood dinners,” mentioned Beth Lowell, vp of Oceana, a conservation group. “For decades, the U.S. science-based approach to fisheries management has rebuilt declining stocks, kept American fishers on the water, and protected important places and wildlife.”
Some sectors of the fishing business have been hit onerous by environmental modifications and overfishing, together with within the Northeast, the place once-lucrative industries for Maine shrimp and Atlantic cod way back dried up. West Coast species, together with some sorts of salmon, have additionally been depleted.
There have additionally been successes. The federal authorities mentioned final yr it was in a position to take away Atlantic coast bluefish and a Washington coast inventory of coho salmon from the overfished checklist.
Fishermen mentioned they see a brighter future because of the Trump govt order. The modifications symbolize a “thoughtful, strategic approach” that might be a lifeline to America’s fishermen, mentioned Lisa Wallenda Picard, president and chief govt officer of the Nationwide Fisheries Institute in Virginia.
“The EO outlines key actions to benefit every link in the supply chain — from hardworking fishermen to parents who serve their family this nutritious and sustainable protein at home,” Wallenda Picard mentioned. “Importantly, the order calls for reducing unnecessary regulatory burdens on fishermen and seafood producers while also promoting the many benefits of eating seafood as part of a healthy, balanced diet.”
Trump’s order got here on the identical day he issued a proclamation permitting industrial fishing in Pacific Islands Heritage Marine Nationwide Monument. The monument was created by President George W. Bush in early 2009 and consists of about 495,189 sq. miles (1,282,534 sq. kilometers) within the central Pacific Ocean.
Environmental teams, a few of whom vowed to problem makes an attempt to weaken protections in sure areas, additionally criticized that transfer.
“This is one of the most pristine tropical marine environments in the world that already faces dire threats from climate change and ocean acidification,” mentioned David Henkin, an lawyer with conservation group Earthjustice. “We will do everything in our power to protect the monument.”
Countering conservation teams, the Trump administration argues that restrictions similar to catch limits and competitors with wind energy firms for fishing grounds have held again one of many nation’s oldest enterprises.
“Along with overregulation, unfair commerce practices have put our seafood markets at a aggressive drawback,” Trump’s govt order acknowledged.
The order order offers Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick a month to establish “the most heavily overregulated fisheries requiring action and take appropriate action to reduce the regulatory burden on them.” It additionally calls on regional fishing managers to seek out methods to cut back burdens on home fishing and enhance fishing manufacturing.
The order additionally requires the event of a complete seafood commerce technique. It prices Lutnick with reviewing present marine monuments, that are underwater protected areas, and offering suggestions of any that ought to be opened to industrial fishing. Trump additionally focused marine monuments in his first time period.
This story was initially featured on Fortune.com
