July 11, 2008
Friday Victories: Reef-tastic
BY: Emily Fisher
Before I review the good news this week, I have to review the not-so-good. Today the Washington Post reports: “The Bush administration has decided not to take any new steps to regulate greenhouse gas emissions before the president leaves office, despite pressure from the Supreme Court and broad accord among senior federal officials that new regulation is appropriate now.”Instead of acting, the EPA is seeking months of further public comment on the threat posed by global warming. You know what this could mean for the oceans — continuing ocean acidification, rising sea levels, disrupted food webs and ecosystems. We’ll keep fighting.And now, to the good: 1. Fins attached, at last! — A bill banning shark finning in all U.S. waters passed the U.S. House and is on its way to the Senate. 2. Good reef! — Oceana’s Ranger has discovered white coral in the Bay of Biscay. Bonus: Florida Gov. Crist signed a coral reef protection bill as part of the International Coral Reef Symposium.