Complete list of press releases

(Washington D.C. - April 5, 2016) Today, the Environmental Defense Fund’s (EDF) Defend Our Future initiative, a campaign focused on mobilizing young people to change the politics around climate change, was named one of the Pluribus Project’s Political Game Changers. Defend Our Future was selected from more than 120 applicants for its proposal to examine the power of a pledge to vote in motivating people to participate in the political process. The Pluribus Project is a non-partisan initiative of the Aspen Institute dedicated to building the political power of the many.  

“We know that young people care most about taking action on climate change, but they are the least likely to vote. In order to change the politics around climate, we need more young people to vote,” said Alicia Prevost, Director of Defend Our Future. “Many studies have shown that by simply making a pledge or commitment to act increases the likelihood that person will take action. It sounds simple but we think applying it to political engagement could have a huge impact in 2016.” 

Defend Our Future first piloted its Pledge to Vote program in Colorado in 2014, and achieved an astounding ten percentage point increase in turnout for young voters in its program. The campaign plans to expand to four more states in 2016, and is currently underway in Pennsylvania, where it is encouraging young people to vote in the April 26th primary.

Elizabeth Thompson, Vice President of EDF Climate and Political Affairs said, “Millennials are going to be critically important in creating the political momentum we need for climate action. That’s why EDF and Defend Our Future have been focused on activating these younger voters.” 

Heather Smith, the former President of Rock the Vote and a senior advisor to the Pluribus Project said, “The projects in the Pluribus Portfolio present innovative opportunities to change the way the political game is won so it works more effectively for the many and not just the few.”

As part of the project, an Indiegogo campaign will be launched to allow contributions from the public. It is the Pluribus Project’s hope that this will provide an opportunity for the many to help restore the integrity of their system of representation. The Indiegogo campaign launches on April 5th and will last for 32 days.

(LOS ANGELES – April 5, 2016) Multiple state agencies and utilities report a higher risk of power outages in Southern California in the months ahead due to crippled natural gas balancing capabilities stemming from the prolonged shutdown of one of the nation’s largest gas storage facilities.  Nearly 100,000 metric tons of methane, the main ingredient in natural gas and a powerful climate pollutant, escaped into the atmosphere when a ruptured gas well at the Aliso Canyon storage field, owned by the utility SoCalGas, leaked for four months.

The California Energy Commission, California Public Utilities Commission, California Independent System Operator and Los Angeles Department of Water and Power also released an action plan on how to preserve regional gas and electric reliability.

“SoCalGas has failed to manage the integrity of Aliso Canyon, and now the reliability of the power system looks to be in jeopardy. Now is the time to end the gas monopoly and put clean energy investments to work like never before.

“Southern California is simply too reliant on natural gas and gas storage provided by one market participant. It doesn’t have to be this way. Out of this crisis, important reforms to the gas market are needed to allow renewable energy, demand response and other low-carbon technologies to compete with natural gas – paving the way for safer, cleaner and more resilient energy.

“And under no circumstances should Aliso Canyon ever be returned to service, even for a short period of time, if the company and the state cannot guarantee that it will be operated safely and with zero leaks, and provide hard evidence to that effect.”

-Tim O’Connor, California Oil & Gas Director, Climate & Energy

(NEW ORLEANS – April 4, 2016) Groups working on Gulf restoration lauded news today of the signing of the consent decree between the Department of Justice and BP. The agreement is the final step to settling BP’s penalties for the 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil disaster.

Groups including Environmental Defense Fund, National Wildlife Federation, National Audubon Society, Ocean Conservancy, and The Nature Conservancy, released the following statement:

“Today’s approval by Judge Carl Barbier means that billions of dollars for the largest environmental restoration effort in American history can finally be put to work. Funding under the provisions of the RESTORE Act and for natural resource damages will now be guaranteed for the next 17 years. This is a unique opportunity for state and federal agencies to work together toward a more resilient Gulf of Mexico. If done right, investment in the Gulf can have lasting benefits for the region and the nation.  

“Now is a time for big thinking across funding streams. This is a defining moment for the RESTORE Council and Natural Resource Damage Assessment Trustees, National Fish and Wildlife Foundation leaders and others to all pull together and make good on years of promises for Gulf Coast restoration and resilience.”

(NEW ORLEANS – April 4, 2016) On Monday, April 4, Governor John Bel Edwards signed Executive Order NO. JBE 2016 – 09 underscoring the state’s prioritization of coastal restoration and protection activities and requiring all state agencies, departments and offices to adhere to the Coastal Master Plan to the greatest degree possible. In response, national and local organizations comprising the Restore the Mississippi River Delta Coalition – Environmental Defense Fund, National Wildlife Federation, National Audubon Society, Coalition to Restore Coastal Louisiana and Lake Pontchartrain Basin Foundation – released the following statement:

“This executive order strongly affirmed the state’s commitment to coastal restoration and protection today. With billions of dollars already invested in a master plan that has benefitted tens of thousands of acres with more forthcoming, we applaud Governor Edwards for helping to remove barriers and ensure efficiency in the state’s fight to save its coast.  

“We’re all in this together, and we need to work together to undertake what the Governor has outlined as a top state priority in the years ahead. This order helps to ensure that agencies and departments will work cooperatively and leverage resources wherever possible to get the job done.

“This collaboration and unified front is especially important with Louisiana in the midst of one of the largest ecosystem restoration programs in U.S. history. We have a golden opportunity to get this right – and that also means protecting funding for and advancing projects in the Coastal Master Plan. Our organizations will continue to work with Governor Edwards and all stakeholders to do just that.”

A new report unveiled today by U.S. Global Change Research Program (USGCRP) outlines the multiple ways that climate change threatens the lives and health of all Americans.

The Impacts of Climate Change on Human Health in the United States: A Scientific Assessment is the result of three years of work by the USGCRP, which also prepared the 2014 .

The new assessment focuses on the impacts on climate change on public health, and it finds:

“Climate change is a significant threat to the health of the American people. The impacts of human-induced climate change are increasing nationwide … climate change impacts endanger our health by affecting our food and water sources, the air we breathe, the weather we experience, and our interactions with the built and natural environments. As the climate continues to change, the risks to human health continue to grow.”

The release of the assessment comes on the heels of almost two dozen court briefs filed in support of the Clean Power Plan – the single biggest step that America has taken to address climate change. Hundreds of business, government, medical, scientific, religious and environmental leaders – including EDF — called on the courts to uphold the measure against challenges.

“Just last week, we saw a massive outpouring of support for the Clean Power Plan. Today, this report shows why the Clean Power Plan and other measures to reduce climate pollution are so vitally important,” said Fred Krupp, president of Environmental Defense Fund (EDF). “This new assessment shows that climate change is a clear threat to our health and the health of our families, which gives all of us a very personal stake in this fight. Hopefully, it will encourage more Americans to support climate action.”

The new report lists a frighteningly long list of ways that climate change can make us sick, hurt us, or even kill us. In nine chapters, it covers temperature related deaths and illnesses, air quality impacts, water related illnesses, food safety, and diseases transmitted by pests like fleas and mosquitos.

Among its findings:

• “Days that are hotter than usual in the summer or colder than usual in the winter are both associated with increased illness and death… Mortality effects are observed even for small differences from seasonal average temperatures.”
• “Based on present-day sensitivity to heat, an increase of thousands to tens of thousands of premature heat-related deaths in the summer … [is] projected each year as a result of climate change by the end of the century.”
• “Climate change will make it harder for any given regulatory approach to reduce ground-level ozone pollution [smog] in the future as meteorological conditions become increasingly conducive to forming ozone over most of the United States … Unless offset by additional emissions reductions, these climate-driven increases in ozone will cause premature deaths, hospital visits, lost school days, and acute respiratory symptoms.”
• “Rising temperatures, changing precipitation patterns, and a higher frequency of some extreme weather events associated with climate change will influence the distribution, abundance, and prevalence of infection in the mosquitoes that transmit West Nile virus and other pathogens by altering habitat availability and mosquito and viral reproduction rates.”
• “Ticks capable of carrying the bacteria that cause Lyme disease and other pathogens will show earlier seasonal activity and a generally northward expansion in response to increasing temperatures associated with climate change.”
• “Runoff from more frequent and intense extreme precipitation events will increasingly compromise recreational waters, shellfish harvesting waters, and sources of drinking water through increased introduction of pathogens and prevalence of toxic algal blooms.”
• “Increases in some extreme weather events and storm surges will increase the risk that infrastructure for drinking water, wastewater, and stormwater will fail due to either damage or exceedance of system capacity, especially in areas with aging infrastructure.”
• “The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimate that there are 48 million cases of foodborne illnesses per year, with approximately 3,000 deaths. As climate change drives changes in environmental variables such as ambient temperature, precipitation, and weather extremes (particularly flooding and drought), increases in foodborne illnesses are expected.”
• “The nutritional value of agriculturally important food crops, such as wheat and rice, will decrease as rising levels of atmospheric carbon dioxide continue to reduce the concentrations of protein and essential minerals in most plant species.”

“Today’s approval sets in motion the largest environmental restoration program in U.S history, totaling more than $20 billion for Gulf Coast recovery and restoration. Six years after the spill, this historic decree represents a significant milestone for the ecosystems, economies and communities of the Gulf Coast that were damaged by the oil disaster. We commend the Gulf Coast states, U.S. Department of Justice and BP for reaching a resolution.

“Now that the agreement is final, it is imperative that the states and agencies implementing these restoration programs use this money as it is intended – to create a more resilient Gulf ecosystem. A comprehensive approach across these funding streams is key to the long-term sustainability and vitality of America’s Gulf Coast. We encourage the Administration and Gulf Coast states to make speed and innovation the benchmarks for how these funds are put to use.”

- Fred Krupp, president of Environmental Defense Fund

(Washington, D.C. — April 1, 2016) The ranks of official Clean Power Plan legal defenders grew by huge numbers today, as supporters of the historic measure to reduce climate pollution and protect public health filed amicus, or “friend of the court,” briefs with the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit.

The D.C. Circuit is preparing for oral arguments in lawsuits about the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Clean Power Plan – the first time any court will consider the case on its merits. 

Today, rigorous amicus briefs were filed by hundreds of leaders across America with deep and diverse expertise including: Amazon; Apple; Google; Microsoft; Ikea; Mars Inc.; Adobe; Blue Cross/Blue Shield of Massachusetts; 193 current Members of Congress; 54 cities, counties and mayors (including dozens in states litigating to obstruct these protections); former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright and former Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta; former Republican EPA Administrators William D. Ruckelshaus and William K. Reilly; the Consumers Union; a broad cross-section of religious organizations; leading health and medical associations; and many of the nation’s leading experts on the electric grid, the Clean Air Act, and climate science.

“The extraordinary and diverse experts from across America who are defending the Clean Power Plan show the unstoppable momentum for climate action in America,” said Fred Krupp, president of Environmental Defense Fund (EDF), which is a party to the case. “These rigorous and compelling briefs are a vivid reminder that Americans are embracing the clean energy future and recognizing the importance of securing a safe climate for our health, economy, and generations to come. It makes me optimistic about the court battle ahead of us. EDF looks forward to presenting a strong case in defense of the Clean Power Plan.” 

The Clean Power Plan is the single biggest step America has ever taken to address the threat of climate change. It established the first-ever national limits on carbon pollution from fossil-fuel fired power plants – the largest source of such pollution in the U.S.

EPA estimates that by 2030, the Clean Power Plan will:

• Reduce carbon pollution from existing power plants 32 percent below 2005 levels
• Save 3,600 lives annually
• Prevent 90,000 childhood asthma attacks annually
• Save American families almost $85 on their annual energy bill

Earlier this week, the EPA filed its defense of the Clean Power Plan. 

A large and diverse group of Clean Power Plan supporters also filed briefs as parties to the case, including: a coalition of 18 States and seven cities and counties; a large group of power companies; three advanced energy trade associations representing more than 3,000 companies and organizations in the advanced energy sector; and a coalition of public health and environmental groups, including EDF.

Oral arguments will take place on June 2 before a three-judge panel of the D.C. Circuit Court. 

You can find all today’s amicus briefs, and all other legal briefs in the case, on EDF’s website. 

(Washington D.C., April 1, 2016) Energy Secretary Moniz and Administrator Dominguez of the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration today announced a multi-agency task force that will lead a review of the nation’s aging natural gas storage facilities. This step comes in response to the massive four-month leak at the Aliso Canyon storage facility in Los Angeles where a ruptured well spewed nearly 100,000 metric tons of methane pollution into the atmosphere, dislocating and sickening many in the local community.

“Aliso Canyon is the poster child for what happens when dilapidated oil and gas infrastructure meets poor maintenance, weak regulations and lax oversight. This disaster is just one of a series of troubling failures among the 400 other natural gas storage facilities nationwide – some of which that have resulted in loss of life. The safety and environmental impact of leaks at these facilities, particularly for the climate, continues to be enormous.

“We applaud the administration for making this challenge a national priority. This new task force has a crucial opportunity to prevent the next disaster, and to reduce the ongoing, invisible damage caused by leakage from hundreds of these facilities spread all across the country. Now the task force must move swiftly to deliver new standards that address a problem that’s been ignored for far too long.

“The eyes of the world are now open to our global oil and gas methane problem and its unacceptable consequences for human health, safety and the environment. Fortunately, low cost solutions are in hand to cut oil and gas methane pollution by at least 40 percent. But to do the job of getting all operators to play by the same rules requires strong national methane policy that covers all current and future sources.”

                           -Fred Krupp, president of Environmental Defense Fund

(OHIO – March 31, 2016) Against the recommendation of environmental, consumer, and business advocates, the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio today approved subsidy requests from Ohio-based utility giants AEP and FirstEnergy. These bailouts will keep outdated, inefficient power plants afloat for the next eight years at an estimated cost of $6 billion to Ohio customers.

“Today, Ohio regulators showed their loyalties lie with politically powerful polluters rather than the people they are supposed to serve. Instead of encouraging investment in abundant, clean energy solutions, these bailouts subsidize old power plants that are dirtying our air – a terrible deal for Ohioans’ health and wallets. Fortunately, since Ohio regulators refuse to defend fair markets and competition, we’re confident the federal regulators and courts won’t let this harmful decision stand.”

• Jim Marston, Vice President, Clean Energy, Environmental Defense Fund

“This announcement is the latest confirmation that the world’s two largest economies and two largest emitters are committed to working together in the fight against climate change.

“U.S.-China cooperation was critical to reaching the landmark climate agreement in Paris last December — and will be equally crucial to implementing it. By announcing they will sign the Paris Agreement next month in New York, and urging other nations to follow their lead, the two countries are taking a significant step toward turning the promise of Paris into reality.

“Equally important is the support for other multilateral efforts, in particular the adoption this year of a global market-based measure to address greenhouse gas emissions from international aviation. A strong agreement at the 2016 International Civil Aviation Organization Assembly is one of the top global priorities for climate change this year — and a key part of President Obama’s legacy. Today’s renewed sign of commitment from the U.S. and China should strengthen the resolve of other countries in ICAO — and open a pathway to resolving the key question of how to share, fairly, the responsibilities for offsetting future aviation emissions. The clock is ticking, with only 190 days left until the conclusion of the ICAO Assembly in Montreal.”

• Nathaniel Keohane, Vice President, Global Climate, Environmental Defense Fund

(Washington, D.C. – March 29, 2016) A broad coalition of environmental and health organizations, including EDF, delivered a forceful and comprehensive argument in support of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Clean Power Plan to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit today.

The Clean Power Plan establishes the first national limits on carbon pollution from fossil-fuel fired power plants, our nation’s single largest source of such pollution. The brief filed by the coalition today adds to EPA’s own strong defense, which was filed yesterday.   

“Carbon pollution is destabilizing our climate and threatening our health, security, and economic well-being, and fossil fuel-fired power plants are the largest source of that pollution in America,” said Tomás Carbonell, EDF’s Director of Regulatory Policy and Senior Attorney. “The Clean Power Plan is the most important step our nation has taken to place reasonable limits on climate pollution and leave a healthier and safer climate for our children. Our brief reaffirms that the Clean Power Plan faithfully adheres to the Clean Air Act and is based on a rigorous technical record — and shows that the legal attacks on these vital standards are completely without merit.”

In their brief, the environmental and health organizations underscore Supreme Court precedent finding that the Clean Air Act “speaks directly” to the carbon pollution from existing power plants, and explain that EPA’s Clean Power Plan is anchored in law and fact, writing: 

“The [Clean Power Plan] is highly cost-effective, well-suited to the regulated industry, and accommodating of industry and state requests for compliance flexibility … In developing the Rule, EPA carried out its core Clean Air Act role to limit dangerous air pollution, using cost-effective tools employed in prior power sector regulations and relying on emissions-reducing measures already widely used in the industry.” (Brief, pages 1 and 5)

The brief also addresses opponents’ spurious arguments that EPA should not have created the Clean Power Plan under section 111d of the Clean Air Act because it already regulates other types of pollutants under a different section of the same law: 

“This bizarre proposition is like exempting restaurants from food handling requirements because they are subject to the fire code. The Clean Air Act does not work that way. (Brief, page 20-21)

“The Clean Power Plan’s cost-effective, flexible approach is consistent with the law and consistent with market trends that are already driving dramatic reductions in carbon pollution from the power sector,” said EDF Attorney Martha Roberts. “We are confident the court will agree that the Clean Power Plan is an appropriate exercise of EPA’s duty under the Clean Air Act to protect our communities from climate change.” 

EDF was joined on today’s brief by Natural Resources Defense Council, the Sierra Club, Earthjustice, the Clean Air Task Force, the Center for Biological Diversity, the American Lung Association, the Clean Air Council, Clean Wisconsin, the Conservation Law Foundation, the Ohio Environmental Council, the Ohio Valley Environmental Coalition, the West Virginia Highlands Conservancy, Coal River Mountain Watch, the Kanawha Forest Coalition, the Mon Valley Clean Air Coalition and Keepers of the Mountains Foundation.

Other parties supporting EPA – a coalition of 18 States and seven cities and counties (including Chicago, Philadelphia, New York City, and South Miami- Broward County); a large group of power companies; and three advanced energy trade associations representing more than 3,000 companies and organizations in the advanced energy sector, a $200 billion industry — also submitted their briefs in defense of the Clean Power Plan today. 

On Friday, an extensive group of Clean Power Plan supporters will file amicus, or “friend of the court,” briefs.

Oral arguments will take place on June 2 before a three-judge panel of the D.C. Circuit Court. 

You can find more about the Clean Power Plan, including all legal briefs in the case, on EDF’s website. 

(CHICAGO – March 29, 2016) The Illinois Commerce Commission (ICC) recently embraced critical elements of the “Open Data Access Framework” developed by Environmental Defense Fund (EDF) and the Citizens Utility Board (CUB). The framework is made up of guidelines for protecting, collecting, and sharing energy-use data. The ICC’s decision creates standardized language so customers can securely share their data with third parties, and directs the implementation of Green Button Connect, part of national energy data standards developed by the U.S. Department of Energy.

“This decision represents a vital step toward giving Illinoisans unprecedented insight into their electricity use. By establishing a standard process for sharing data, the Illinois Commerce Commission is clearing the way for smarter energy choices that empower people to save money and cut pollution, without sacrificing their privacy or security.”

• Dick Munson, Director, Midwest Clean Energy

(Washington, D.C. – March 28, 2016) The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) submitted a powerful defense of the Clean Power Plan to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit today.

Opponents have been challenging the historic measure to reduce climate pollution and protect public health since before EPA was done writing it, but this is the first time that any court is considering the case on its merits. EPA filed its brief in support of the Clean Power Plan today, writing: 

“The [Clean Power Plan] will secure critically important reductions in carbon dioxide (“CO2”) emissions from what are by far the largest emitters in the United States—fossil-fuel-fired power plants. CO2 and other heat-trapping greenhouse-gas emissions pose a monumental threat to Americans’ health and welfare by driving long-lasting changes in our climate, leading to an array of severe negative effects, which will worsen over time. These effects include rising sea levels that could flood coastal population centers; increasingly frequent and intense weather events such as storms, heat waves, and droughts; impaired air and water quality; shrinking water supplies; the spread of infectious disease; species extinction; and national security threats …

“The Clean Air Act … provides the Environmental Protection Agency (“EPA”) well-established authority to abate threats to public health and welfare by limiting the amount of air pollution that power plants pump into the atmosphere. For decades, a host of CAA regulatory programs have limited various pollutants emitted by these plants … 

“The [Clean Power Plan] reflects the eminently reasonable exercise of EPA’s recognized statutory authority. It will achieve cost-effective CO2 reductions from an industry that has already demonstrated its ability to comply with robust pollution-control standards through the same measures and flexible approaches. The Rule fulfills both the letter and spirit of Congress’s direction in the Act, and the petitions should be denied … 

“This critically important Rule marks a significant step forward in addressing the Nation’s most urgent environmental threat. Fossil-fuel-fired power plants are, far and away, the largest stationary sources of CO2 pollution, and no meaningful effort to abate climate change can fail to address them. EPA’s authority and responsibility under Section 111(d) to control this pollution is well-established and was central to the Supreme Court’s holding in AEP that ‘the [CAA] and the EPA actions it authorizes displace any federal common-law right to seek abatement of [CO2] emissions from fossil-fuel fired power plants.’ 564 U.S. at 424. EPA has properly performed its Congressionally assigned task to limit this pollution.” (Brief, pages 1, 3 and 25) 

Environmental Defense Fund is a party to the case and will file a brief in support of the Clean Power Plan tomorrow, along with a broad and diverse coalition that includes numerous states, cities, power companies, clean energy companies, public health and medical associations, and environmental organizations.

“EPA’s brief forcefully demonstrates that the Clean Power Plan complies with our nation’s clean air laws and is anchored in a robust factual record,” said Tomás Carbonell, EDF’s Director of Regulatory Policy and Senior Attorney. “The Clean Power Plan is vital to protecting public health and providing a safer climate for our children, and it will make our economy stronger.  We look forward to adding our brief to the powerful defense that EPA filed today, together with a broad and diverse coalition of allies supporting these essential standards.” 

Other supporters of the Clean Power Plan will file amicus, or “friend of the court,” briefs this Friday. Oral arguments will take place on June 2 before a three-judge panel.

The Clean Power Plan establishes the first-ever national limits on carbon pollution from fossil-fuel fired power plants. Fossil fuel-fired power plants are the largest source of greenhouse gas emissions in the United States, accounting for almost 40 percent of the country’s carbon pollution. 

EPA estimates that by 2030, the Clean Power Plan will:

• Reduce carbon pollution from existing power plants 32 percent below 2005 levels

• Save 3,600 lives annually

• Prevent 90,000 childhood asthma attacks annually

• Save American families almost $85 on their annual energy bill

You can find more about the Clean Power Plan, including all legal briefs in the case, on EDF’s website. 

(WASHINGTON – March 28, 2016) Groundbreaking research published today in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences shows the majority of the world’s wild fisheries could be at healthy levels in just 10 years, and that global fish populations could double by 2050 with better fishing approaches compared to business as usual. The peer-reviewed study is authored by researchers from the University of California at Santa Barbara, The University of Washington and Environmental Defense Fund.

In addition to recovering fish populations, the newly published paper shows that by 2050 the world’s fisheries could produce more seafood and increase profits for fishermen by 204 percent versus business as usual. The increased harvest would be enough to provide a significant source of protein for an additional half a billion people. With a projected 9.5 billion people competing for more food from maxed out resources in the coming decades, finding sustainable ways to increase food production has become critical. 

“This research shows that we really can have our fish and eat them too,” said Chris Costello, the paper’s lead author and a professor of environmental and resource economics at the University of California at Santa Barbara. “We no longer need to see ocean fisheries as a series of trade-offs. In fact we show that we can have more fish in the water, more food on the plate, and more prosperous fishing communities—and it can happen relatively quickly.” 

According to the paper, if reforms were implemented today, three-quarters of exploited fisheries worldwide could attain population goals within ten years, and 98% by mid-century. These powerful conclusions emerged from an analysis using a massive database of 4,713 fisheries that represent 78 percent of the ocean’s catch. That’s far more precise and granular than previous analyses.

“We’ve uncovered a really important insight: there is urgency and tremendous upside in reforming thousands of small-scale, community fisheries around the world,” said Ray Hilborn, a co-author and professor of marine biology and fisheries science at the University of Washington. “The research adds to the body of work that shows that most of the world’s large fisheries are doing relatively well, but it emphasizes the critical need to rebuild local fisheries that millions of fishermen and their families depend on for food and livelihoods, most of which are in the developing world.”

The research suggests that implementing reforms, like secure fishing rights, are critical to providing the combined benefits of increased fish populations, profits and food production. Fishing rights is a fishery management approach that ends the desperate race for fish by asking fishermen and women to adhere to strict, science-based catch limits in exchange for a right to a share of the catch or to a traditional fishing area.

“We now have a clear roadmap for how to recover fisheries: give fishermen secure fishing rights so they can control and protect their future,” said Amanda Leland, a co-author of the paper and senior vice president for oceans at Environmental Defense Fund. “Countries from the U.S. to Belize to Namibia are leading a turnaround by implementing secure fishing rights and realizing benefits for people and the oceans.”

In United States federal waters, since 2000, overfishing has dropped 70% as the number of species managed with fishing rights or “catch shares” has quadrupled. In the past three years fishing industry jobs have increased 31 percent and fishermen revenues by 44 percent. In Belize, the government has just begun to implement a fishing rights program for their small-scale fishermen, that has dramatically increased compliance and shown tremendous potential to recover important local species.

“Our research reveals a stark choice: manage fisheries sustainably and realize the tremendous potential of the world’s oceans, or allow status quo to continue to draw down the natural capital of our oceans,” said Costello.

You can read the research published by the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences here.

The study’s co-authors are: 

Christopher Costello¹, Daniel Ovando¹,  Tyler Clavelle¹, C. Kent Strauss², Ray Hilborn³, Michael C. Melnychuk³, Trevor A. Branch³, Steven D. Gaines¹, Cody S. Szuwalski¹, Reniel B. Cabral¹, Douglas N. Rader²,  Amanda Leland²

¹University of California at Santa Barbara; ²Environmental Defense Fund; ³The University of Washington

(HARRISBURG, Penn. – March 28, 2016) The Environmental Defense Fund applauds Pennsylvania Governor Tom Wolf for vetoing House Bill 1327 – a Fiscal Code Bill accompanying the state budget with extraneous provisions that would have unnecessarily jeopardized critical environmental and public health protections.

“By vetoing this bill, Governor Wolf  sent a strong message that Pennsylvania is serious about moving forward thoughtfully on important environmental issues, including implementing the Clean Power Plan in a way that works best for Pennsylvania, and finalizing long overdue oil and gas regulations. His veto is a sign of leadership and shows a commitment by this Administration to stand up to legislative games that could weaken important environmental protections that safeguard the health of Keystone State residents.”

·         Andrew Williams, Senior State Regulatory and Legislative Affairs Manager, Environmental Defense Fund