"MIAMI — Activists sued the federal government Thursday to release images of dead orca whales, sea lions and other marine mammals entangled by commercial fishing boats off the U.S. West Coast.
The complaints were filed after the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration failed to fulfill multiple Freedom of Information Act requests filed by Oceana, a Washington-based conservation group, as part of its campaign to raise public awareness about the harmful effects of trawl fishing in federally managed waters.
”People have the right to know how commercial fisheries impact marine wildlife,” Tara Brock, Oceana’s Pacific legal director, said in a statement.
The lawsuits were filed Thursday in federal courts in Alaska and California by attorneys from San Francisco-based Earthjustice on behalf of Oceana."
Joshua Goodman reports for the Associated Press December 20, 2024.
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