Every year, hundreds of thousands of whales, dolphins, sea turtles, and other animals die globally from entanglement in fishing equipment. Countless more are injured. Along the US West Coast, impacted species include humpback whales, gray whales, and fin whales. Despite the breadth of the problem, information about entanglements, including where they occurred, what animals were impacted, and what kind of fishing gear was involved, can in some cases be hard to come by.
Tara Brock, Pacific legal director and senior counsel with Oceana, and Ben Grundy, oceans campaigner with the Center for Biological Diversity, join Terra Verde host and producer Zoe Loftus-Farren to discuss their work on the issue, including efforts to fill information gaps, steer us towards practical solutions, and ultimately, reduce the number of animals ensnared in our fishing gear.