This year a new bill has been introduced that will prohibit the possession and sale of shark fins in Texas. The Bill, HB 5179 sponsored by House Member Eddie Lucio, will help stop the global decline of sharks and protect Gulf sharks by stopping the trade through Texas ports. Due to protection in place by nine other states, Texas is now the source of nearly half of the remaining U.S. trade in shark fins by unscrupulous traders from out of state.
Help us protect sharks in the Gulf and oceans by signing our petition asking the Texas State House to pass H.B. 5179
Shark finning is the abhorrent and wasteful practice of cutting off a shark’s fins and discarding the body, often still alive, back into the ocean to drown or bleed to death. The shark fin trade in the U.S. contributes to plummeting shark populations across the world.
Shark finning is illegal in US waters, but fins from sharks finned on the high seas, caught illegally or unsustainably by other nations can still be imported into Texas and sold overseas. Many countries do not have this law, or like Mexico do not enforce it, and shark finners from around the world are profiting by trading through US ports. Help stop the slaughter by reducing the demand and stopping the shark fin trade.
Sharks are in trouble worldwide and need your help.
Click HERE to support Rhode Island and the New Jersey Shark Fin bills.
Please join Shark Watch and add your observations, or inquire about our youth education programs.
Shark Stewards is a non-profit project of the Earth Island Institute. Please, Support our Work!