Hugh Bollinger / Thursday, September 22, 2011

Sharks require another update

Riled Up has paid close attention to sharks with previous posts on their conservation situation and the massive overfishing of these top ocean predators to produce a status-symbol soup in China, Hong Kong, and Taiwan. The unsustainable demand in Asia poses the threat of extinction for these iconic marine creatures that have survived since the dinosaurs. It seems that many others around the world have been paying attention to their precarious situation also. Both the BBC and Public Radio International ran dual radio reports today about efforts to stop the trade in shark's fins and enforce laws to stop overfishing. Hong Kong and China came in for particular negative ridicule but in both cases there are early signs of hope. A super-rich Chinese businessman-- and member of the Chinese national assembly --and a basketball sports hero in Hong Kong have both called for aggressive shark protection. Their efforts couldn't be more timely and should be widely celebrated and supported. If these positive trends expand, maybe the hugely destructive practice of killing sharks just for their fins will come to a much needed conclusion. Riled Up

The Dolphin in the Mirror Lensing the wind

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Tags: marine conservation China Hong Kong shark protection sharks fins

Sharks require another update

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