Please help me pass this good news on. It shows that environmentalists (and turtle lovers) can win. I’ve pasted in a news release below with all the details.

Endangered and threatened sea turtles in the Gulf of Mexico swam, ate and lived a lot easier starting August 21– it was the first day new federal regulations went into effect requiring shrimpers to use larger turtle excluder devices (TEDs) in their nets.

It’s been controversial, of course, with shrimpers decrying the additional costs and shrimp they say will be lost. Environmentalists persevered, with Oceana, the international ocean advocacy group, spearheading efforts to get the new rule passed.
Here is Oceana’s release for your information:

For immediate release:
Contacts:
Courtney Sakai, Oceana, 877-7-OCEANA, csakai@oceana.org
Claude M. Gruener, 512-479-5080, ausink@texas.net

Sea Turtles Finally Protected in the Gulf of Mexico, Thanks to TEDs
NOAA rule requiring use of Turtle Excluder Devices (TEDs) – result of lobbying by Oceana and others– could reduce endangered leatherback and loggerhead deaths by some 94%
WASHINGTON D.C. – Endangered and threatened sea turtles now have a new lease on life with new federal rules becoming effective in the Gulf of Mexico, Aug. 21.

Scientists with National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Fisheries, the federal agency responsible for the management of ocean fisheries, expect that annual deaths of endangered leatherback sea turtles will decline 97% and that annual deaths of threatened loggerheads will decrease 94% as a result of the new protections.

NOAA Fisheries issued a rule on Feb. 20, 2003 requiring U.S. shrimp fishermen in the Gulf of Mexico and the South Atlantic to use larger turtle excluder device (TED) openings in their nets. Shrimpers in the South Atlantic were required to start using the larger TEDs April 15. The new rule went into effect in the Gulf of Mexico Thursday, Aug. 21, six months after the new protection announcement.

TEDs act as escape hatches for sea turtles. Current TEDs are too small to allow large, mature sea turtles — particularly leatherbacks, loggerheads and greens—to escape from shrimp nets. All sea turtles in U.S. waters are listed as either endangered or threatened under the Endangered Species Act of 1973 (ESA).

Oceana led a coalition of environmental groups during the last two years to obtain stronger protections for sea turtles. Oceana also organized critical support from Congressional allies and leading scientists and spearheaded efforts to generate public debate on this issue. Of the approximately 8,000 letters sent to NOAA Fisheries on the rule during the public comment period, 93% (some 7,700) supported additional protections for sea turtles.

"We think this is win-win for the turtles and fishermen," said Charlotte Gray, marine wildlife scientist for Oceana. "The data is clear: TEDs save sea turtles and many shrimpers, particularly those in Georgia, have used TEDs with larger openings for years with minimal shrimp loss."

NOAA Fisheries’ data for both the South Atlantic and Gulf of Mexico regions suggest that properly installed and operated TEDs with larger openings lose between zero and 2% of shrimp caught. The federal government’s economic analysis estimates that the cost of retrofitting a net to comply with the new rule is $220 per net.

In addition, financial assistance is available to shrimpers. Earlier this year, the U.S. Congress passed a $35 million economic package for shrimpers in the Gulf of Mexico and South Atlantic. Economic aid to shrimpers to ensure widespread and proper use of TEDs and other bycatch reduction devices in the fishery is an eligible use of the federal funds. Texas has been allocated more than $5.5 million as part of this program.

"We support assistance for shrimpers," noted Gray, "because it ensures that local shrimpers can maintain their livelihood while still protecting the lives of endangered and threatened sea turtles."

Oceana is a non-profit, international advocacy organization dedicated to restoring and protecting the world's oceans through policy advocacy, science, law and public education. Founded in 2001, Oceana's constituency includes members and activists from more than 150 countries and territories who are committed to saving the world’s marine environment. Oceana, headquartered in Washington, D.C., has additional offices in key U.S. coastal areas and a South American office in Santiago, Chile, and will open a European office in September 2003. For more information, please visit www.Oceana.org.
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• Good News for Gulf Turtles! - claudethetexan, Sat Aug 30 20:06:06 2003