April 18, 2023 – Leading up to the 13th anniversary of one of the worst environmental disasters in U.S. history — the BP Deepwater Horizon oil spill — Oceana is calling on President Joe Biden to lead on climate change and honor his campaign promise to prevent new offshore oil and gas drilling in U.S. waters. In a new report released […]
Oceana
Posted inCalifornia
New Report Finds California Ocean Biodiversity at Risk from Set Gillnet Fishery
MONTEREY, CALIF. — Today, Oceana and Turtle Island Restoration Network (TIRN) released a report finding that the set gillnet fishery targeting California halibut and white seabass off Southern California is threatening the heath and diversity of the ocean ecosystem. This fishery throws overboard 64 percent of the animals caught, which is among the highest “bycatch” […]
Posted inUS
Oceana Analysis Finds U.S. Falls Short on Transparency at Sea
WASHINGTON — Oceana released a new analysis today finding that the United States’ requirements for transparency of fishing vessels fall short of other countries’ requirements, including the European Union. Oceana says this analysis reinforces the need for the U.S. government to expand regulations and require more fishing vessels to use public tracking devices. Public vessel […]
Posted inCalifornia
Pacific Leatherback Sea Turtle Added to Calif. State Endangered Species Act
SACRAMENTO, Calif. October 15, 2021 – Yesterday, the California Fish and Game Commission voted unanimously to designate the Western Pacific population of leatherback sea turtles as endangered under the California Endangered Species Act (CESA). Pacific leatherbacks are the most endangered sea turtle in the Pacific Ocean with their population having declined 95% over the last thirty years. […]
Posted inCalifornia
Oceana Analysis Finds Sensitive Species and Habitats Most At-Risk from California Oil Spill
Oceana released a new analysis today identifying some of the most endangered and vulnerable species at-risk from the devastating oil spill taking place off the coast of Huntington Beach, Calif. As part of its assessment, Oceana mapped the locations of ecologically diverse and economically valuable ocean resources most susceptible to oil contamination, which it says is critical […]
Posted inUS
House-Passed Federal Spending Bill Blocks Expansion of Offshore Drilling
WASHINGTON, July 29, 2021 — Today, the U.S. House of Representatives voted to approve the fiscal year 2022 Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies funding bill. The bill includes language restricting the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) from spending any resources that would enable the expansion of offshore drilling and related activities to any unleased […]
Posted inEnviro
Congress Introduces Bold New Legislation to Combat Illegal Fishing, Seafood Fraud
WASHINGTON, May 11, 2021 — Today, Rep. Jared Huffman (D-CA) and Rep. Garret Graves (R-LA) introduced the Illegal Fishing and Forced Labor Prevention Act, a comprehensive bill to end illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fishing, expand transparency, and stop seafood fraud, while strengthening U.S. leadership on issues that threaten our oceans, consumers, and human rights. […]
Posted inEnviro
Offshore Drilling Ban Could Prevent Over 19 Billion Tons of Greenhouse Gas Emissions and Over $720 Billion in Damages
WASHINGTON, January 26, 2021 – An Oceana analysis released today finds permanent offshore drilling protections for unleased federal waters could prevent over 19 billion tons of greenhouse gas emissions as well as more than $720 billion in damages to people, property and the environment. Oceana calls on President Biden to permanently protect our coasts from offshore drilling to ensure the future of our coastal economy that depends on a healthy ocean and help address the growing climate crisis. “By permanently protecting our coasts from dirty offshore drilling and […]
Posted inCalifornia
Oceana Calls for Enforcement of Court Order on Protections for Whales, Sea Turtles From Deadly Drift Gillnets
LOS ANGELES, CA, Nov. 4, 2019 — Oceana filed a motion in federal court today in response to delays of more than a year by the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) to implement regulations that would limit the number of whales, sea turtles and other animals that could be caught and killed in the California-based […]
Posted inCalifornia
House Votes to Protect U.S. Coasts from Offshore Drilling
WASHINGTON, Sept. 11, 2019 — Today, the U.S. House of Representatives voted to permanently protect the Atlantic, Pacific and eastern Gulf of Mexico from dirty and dangerous offshore drilling. The passage of the Coastal and Marine Economies Protection Act (H.R. 1941) and the Protecting and Securing Florida’s Coastline Act (H.R. 205) comes on the heels […]
Posted inCalifornia
New Catch Limits Issued for Northern Anchovy Still Violate the Law
Monterey, Calif. May 31, 2019 —Today, the federal government issued a final rule establishing catch limits for the central sub-population of northern anchovy in response to a prevailing lawsuit filed by Oceana (Oceana, Inc. v. Ross). However, the new rule is nearly a carbon copy of the original rule the National Marine Fisheries Service (Fisheries […]
Posted inCalifornia
Pacific Sardine Population Considered “Overfished” According to New Government Draft Assessment
Monterey, CA, March 26, 2019—A new draft stock assessment released by the National Marine Fisheries Service projects the population of Pacific sardine to be 27,547 metric tons (mt) in July 2019. According to federal law, this population level is well below the 50,000 mt threshold under which the Fisheries Service must declare sardines “overfished.” The […]
Posted inLife
Oceana Finds U.S. Seafood Fraud Persists, More Than 20% of Samples Mislabeled
March 12, 2019 – Oceana released the results of a new seafood fraud investigation, finding that 1 in every 5 fish tested was mislabeled. The study tested seafood not included under the existing federal traceability program, showing that seafood fraud continues in the United States. Oceana collected more than 400 samples from over 250 locations in 24 […]
Posted inCalifornia
Governor Brown Signs Bill to End Destructive Swordfish Drift Gillnet Fishing off California
SACRAMENTO, CA, Sept. 28, 2018 — California Governor Jerry Brown signed into law a bill — Senate Bill (SB) 1017 — that will clean up California’s swordfish fishery. SB 1017 will phase out the use of large-mesh driftnet fishing for swordfish, establish a buyout program, and incentivize the use of cleaner fishing gear to reduce […]
Posted inWorld
Oceana Launches New Science Advisors Initiative for its Campaign to Save the Oceans and Feed the World
WASHINGTON, DC, June 8, 2018 – To mark World Oceans Day, Oceana announced today the launch of its Oceana Science Advisors (OSA) initiative to promote dialogue and collaboration around its “Save the Oceans, Feed the World” campaign. The experts announced today as initial participants represent diverse fields of inquiry and areas of expertise, and their […]
Posted inCalifornia
Congress Introduces Legislation to Sustainably Manage California Swordfish Fishing
WASHINGTON, April 26, 2018 – Today, Senators Dianne Feinstein (D- Calif.), Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV) and Kamala Harris (D-Calif.) introduced legislation—S. 2773—that would pave the way for a sustainable West Coast swordfish fishery by phasing out the use of drift gillnets in ocean waters off California. The bill will facilitate the phase-out of large-scale driftnet […]
Posted inEnviro
President Trump’s Second Budget Proposal Again Seeks Deep Cuts to Key Ocean Programs
WASHINGTON, Feb. 13, 2018 – Yesterday, President Trump released his proposed budget to fund the federal government for fiscal year 2019. His second budget proposal again seeks deep cuts to many ocean programs. Many of these programs fall under the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), which would be slashed 19 percent from current funding […]
Posted inCalifornia
Oceana Releases Expedition Findings for Previously Unexplored Seafloor Areas off Southern California
September 7, 2017 – Today, Oceana released the findings of a scientific expedition it conducted in some never before explored waters off Southern California. In August 2016, in partnership with the Channel Islands National Marine Sanctuary and Marine Applied Research and Exploration, Oceana documented the living seafloor off Southern California along with species that rely […]
Posted inEnviro
Trump Administration Gets One Step Closer to Approving Seismic Airgun Blasting off East Coast
WASHINGTON June 5, 2017 – Today, the Trump administration issued draft Incidental Harassment Authorizations (IHAs) for seismic airgun blasting in the Atlantic Ocean, an extremely loud and dangerous process used to search for oil and gas deposits deep below the ocean’s surface. By issuing these draft IHAs for public comment, Oceana says the federal government […]
Posted inCalifornia
West Coast Commercial Sardine Fishery Closed for Third Consecutive Year
SACRAMENTO, CA, April 10, 2017 – Today, federal fishery managers voted to keep the U.S. West Coast Pacific sardine fishery closed for the upcoming commercial season. With an estimated 86,586 metric tons (mt) of sardine remaining, and 150,000 mt necessary for fishing to occur, this will be the third year in a row there are […]