You can help end overfishing in the Gulf of Maine.

On June 22, 2005, the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) announced a proposed rule change to the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (MSA) that will dramatically affect our nation's ocean resources. CLF opposes this rule change as it would allow continued overfishing of our valuable fish and would delay the rebuilding of depleted stocks. If the rule is implemented, many species that are already overfished could become so severely depleted that they will face ecological collapse and commercial extinction for fisherman.

Many of New England's fish species, such as the famous Georges Bank cod, remain severely depleted after decides of mismanagement and overfishing led to population crashes in the mid-1990s. Preliminary estimates by government scientists in August 2005 put the abundance of Georges Bank cod at only a tenth of what is considered to be a healthy level. Yet the Bush administration, acting through NMFS, has responded...