US retreats from bid to overturn shark fin bans

Agency receives assurances from California, Maryland and Washington that ban would not interfere with legal fishing

Suzanne Goldenberg US environment correspondent

theguardian.com, Wednesday 5 February 2014 09.17 GMT

The US federal government has stepped back from its plans to overturn state bans on the sale and possession of shark fins.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (Noaa) said in a statement on Tuesday it had decided against challenging state bans in California, Maryland and Washington.

The agency said it had received written assurances from the three states that the shark fin ban would not interfere with legal fishing for shark meat.

Noaa said it had initially been concerned the state bans could hurt fishermen who caught sharks for their meat, not their fins.

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Giant US trade deal might weaken shark fin ban

Environmental campaigners are "extremely concerned" that a new trade deal involving the US could weaken attempts to end shark finning.

The first steps to outlaw the practice were agreed at a meeting in Bangkok last March.

But the leaked draft text of the new deal involving 12 Pacific countries has no binding commitment to curb finning.

The long-running negotiations on the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) agreement are due to conclude in April.

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