Rollback of Turtle Device Rule for Shrimp Trawlers Draws Lawsuit

摘要

The Trump administration's rule exempting certain types of shrimp trawlers from turtle escape device requirements will result in more than 1,300 sea turtle deaths annually, environmental groups say in their lawsuit filed in a Washington, D.C., federal court Tuesday. The National Marine Fisheries Service issued the rule without providing notice that it was considering exempting certain vessels, according to the complaint filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia. The Center for Biological Diversity, Defenders of Wildlife, and Turtle Island Restoration Network say the agency failed to rationalize the rule. It also failed to take a hard look at the environmental impacts and failed to ensure the rule wouldn't jeopardize a protected species, the lawsuit says. NMFS has required most shrimp trawl vessels to use turtle excluder devices, which allow sea turtles to escape nets that capture shrimp. The agency proposed to extend the requirements to skimmer trawls, pusher-head trawls, and wing nets in 2016. Three years later, it reversed itself and imposed limits only on skimmer trawls longer than 40 feet. The rule goes into effect Aug. 1, according to the complaint. The agency failed to acknowledge it previously deemed it necessary to require devices on all vessels that use skimmer trawls, pusher-head trawls, and wing nets, the lawsuit says. NMFS says it exempted smaller skimmer trawl vessels due to "safety and other practical concerns." But it hasn't explained what those concerns are, the environmental groups say.