Pam Lyons Gromen Executive Director, National Coalition for Marine Conservation
The Marine Fish Conservation Network launched an online petition to facilitate comments in support of monitoring and reducing bycatch of river herring and shad in the Mid-Atlantic Council's small-mesh fisheries for squid and mackerel.
To date, we have around 2,100 signatures. That's a great start, but we really want to hit 4,000 before the petition deadline of July 7th. Why 4,000? That's the same number of people who wrote to the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission (ASMFC) to demand action on river herring bycatch - before the ASMFC asked the federal councils to address the problem.
We want to show the ASMFC and Councils that concern over this issue is growing - not waning.
2. Sharing the information with other conservation/fishing sites and blogs.
3. Sending out an email action alert to your members encouraging them to sign the petition. (If you would like an example, I'll be happy to send you the text for the email action alert that NCMC distributed)
After July 7th, the Marine Fish Conservation Network will remove the petition from its web site in order to package it for the Mid-Atlantic Council by the official Amendment 14 comment deadline of July 9th.
Thanks for your help and support! Please call me with any questions!
-Pam
Pam Lyons Gromen Executive Director National Coalition for Marine Conservation 4 Royal Street SE, Leesburg, VA 20175 Direct Ph. (703) 777-1961 Fax (703) 777-1107 E-mail: pgromen@mindspring.com Web: www.savethefish.org