Shark Finning Research Paper

Contrary to popular belief, sharks do not commonly attack humans, but humans commonly attack sharks. People all around the world remove shark fins and leave the shark to die. This not only damages shark populations, but it also damages the economy and deprives many of much needed food. There are laws in place to regulate shark finning, but unfortunately, not everyone abides by the law. Some may argue that killing “vicious” animals is not something to be thought about twice, but shark finning is an inhumane and extremely wasteful practice that must end. Shark finning is the act of catching a shark, cutting off its fins while it is still alive, and dumping the rest of the body back into the ocean.When a shark doesn't have fins, it may drown
Sharks being killed not only causes damage to shark populations and other animal populations in the ocean, but can also cause damage to the economy. Sharks have a very low rate of reproduction. Taking many years to mature and only having one shark pup at a time, it takes a long time to replenish the population. This is worrisome for many scientists around the world because many species of sharks are endangered or threatened. “Relative to other marine fish, sharks are characterized by relatively slow growth, late sexual maturity, and a small number of young per brood” (Affairs). The depletion of shark populations can cause an increase in populations of their prey - rays - thus causing a decrease in the number of the smaller animals that are eaten by the rays. This decrease in population can cause the shutdown of fisheries and a decrease in sales for seafood companies. “This not only hurts the bivalve populations and therefore the biodiversity of the ecosystem; it also harms human fisheries “(Fairclough).
Many sharks bring in money from tourists. Often times, tourists will swim with more non-aggressive sharks such as whale sharks. This generates hundreds of thousands of dollars per year, but when sharks are constantly being killed - whether from overfishing or finning - tourism income decreases. These money shortages can cause problems for everyone in the tourist
The Magnuson-Stevens Fisheries Conservation and Management Act protects only the sharks in waters that are under the jurisdiction of the United States Federal Government. In 2000, President Bill Clinton signed the Shark Finning Prohibition Act. This act prohibited the removal the shark fin and dumping the rest of the body, but only in United States’ Federal waters. It also made it illegal to “have custody, control, or possession of any such fin aboard a fishing vessel without the corresponding carcass” (Neville). As a result of the Shark Finning Prohibition Act only applying to “fishing vessels”, many fishermen were able to get around punishment for shark finning. To close this loophole, President Barack Obama signed the Shark Conservation Act, which made it illegal for “any vessel to have shark fins on board unless they are naturally attached to the corresponding shark carcass” (Neville). There are not only federal laws, but also state laws to control shark finning. Hawaii, California, Illinois, Maryland, Delaware, Oregon, Washington, New York, and territories Guam, American Samoa, and the Northern Mariana Islands have all passed laws to put an end to shark finning. International laws include the United Nations’ Food and Agriculture Organization International Plan of Action for the Conservation and Management of