Center For Biological Diversity: Pacific Humpbacks Gain a Team to Fight Entanglements

The National Marine Fisheries Service finally announced Oct 31 that it will form a federal task force to curb Pacific humpback whale entanglements in fishing gear. Dozens of humpbacks are entangled off the Pacific Coast every year. Today’s announcement stems from a 2023 legal victory by the Center for Biological Diversity requiring the Service to form the “take reduction team” by Oct. 31, 2025. “I’m thrilled that our Pacific humpbacks will finally get action to keep them a bit safer from sablefish pot gear,” said Kristen Monsell, oceans legal director at the Center and a member of the new team. More INFO. (The team will not address other West Coast pot fisheries that have gear that can entangle whales, including the Dungeness crab, spot prawn, spiny lobster, and coonstripe shrimp fisheries. Conservation NGOs were critical of the federal government’s decision to limit the scope of the task force when it was first announced back in April - LINK)