Dear John,
Trump just issued a disastrous Executive Order to fast-track floating factory
farms and bypass environmental reviews. Protect our oceans from pollution by donating to Friends of the Earth today.
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Mega-corporations have been trying for years to take over our public oceans with
industrial ocean fish farms, which threaten marine life and coastal communities by pumping untreated fish waste, disease, toxic chemicals, and antibiotics into
our water. That’s why it’s especially galling that Trump is exploiting the
public health crisis to help an industry known for its risks to our public
health.
For years, Friends of the Earth has led on this issue , exposing the industry’s abuses, suing bad actors, blocking dangerous
legislation, and organizing communities against local projects. A national
rubber stamp would be truly catastrophic, so we’re jumping into action, securing
media coverage and driving thousands of messages to the White House. But we
can’t stop this without your support.
Protect ocean habitats, coastal communities, and public health from industrial
fish farming: Donate $10 or more to Friends of the Earth today.
If you've saved your payment information with ActBlue Express, your donation
will go through immediately:
Donate $10 immediately
[[link removed]] Donate $5/month immediately
[[link removed]]With support from Friends of the Earth members like you, we’ve helped build
sweeping opposition to this destructive industry.
Industrial ocean fish farms cram thousands of fish into enormous floating net
pens and cages, exposing wild native fish to pests and disease, while risking
massive farmed fish spills that outcompete native fish for food and mates.
These net pens discharge untreated fish waste and chemicals directly into the
ocean. Packed with fish, these floating cages can become a breeding ground for
parasites like sea lice and fatal diseases. In response, industrial farms use
toxic pesticides and agricultural drugs, which further pollute the ocean and
harm nearby marine life.
In addition, by unfairly driving down the cost of fish and privatizing our
public waterways, these floating factory farms also threaten the livelihood of local fisherfolk
and coastal communities -- which are already facing economic downturns from the coronavirus.
On top of the public health risks mentioned above, a new study of how viruses
are spread shows that escaped salmon from aquaculture facilities carry
pathogens, putting wild salmon at risk. Just this week, we learned that one
operation in Scotland is dumping cancer-causing formaldehyde into their net pens
as a disinfectant. Especially during a global pandemic, we can’t allow this dirty industry to
pollute our ecosystems.
So as Trump exploits the COVID-19 crisis to open our coastal waters nationwide
to these floating factory farms, we’re fighting back.
Can you chip in today so we can stop this together?
Defend our oceans from industrial fish farming, John:
Please donate $10 or more to Friends of the Earth today.
If you've saved your payment information with ActBlue Express, your donation
will go through immediately:
Donate $10 immediately
[[link removed]] Donate $5/month immediately
[[link removed]]Here at Friends of the Earth, we’ve led a national coalition of fishing groups,
Indigenous people, and nonprofit organizations to monitor federal agencies and
push Congress to oppose offshore fish farming.
Thanks to our efforts -- in partnership with engaged Friends of the Earth
members like you -- a dangerous 2018 bill (the AQUAA Act) did not pass through
Congress. But with its reintroduction earlier this year, we’re mobilizing again
to stop this bad legislation from ever becoming law.
It’s clear the federal government is making coordinated moves to benefit these
floating factory farms -- all during a lethal pandemic. In addition to the AQUAA
Act moving again and Trump’s Executive Order, the EPA just announced a
streamlined, general water discharge permit for massive, industrial aquaculture
facilities throughout New England. We’re activating on all fronts to keep these
disastrous policies from moving forward.
And we’ve been advocating for change on the state level, building coalitions in
California, Florida, Washington, North Carolina, and Maine to push legislators
to block factory farm facilities and instead champion sustainable seafood
alternatives.
Three years ago, irresponsible Cooke Aquaculture flouted Washington State
regulations and recklessly spilled more than 263,000 non-native, farmed Atlantic
salmon from its industrial ocean fish farm into Puget Sound waters -- harming
the native salmon populations, spreading parasites and disease, and polluting
the water. So we successfully pushed the state legislature and Governor Inslee
to protect our environment and phase out Cooke’s farms.
But now state officials are going back on that promise. So we just filed a
lawsuit against Washington State’s Department of Fish and Wildlife, for issuing
a new permit to Cooke despite the dangers the corporation poses to federally
protected species and the environment in Puget Sound.
With Trump’s outrageous Executive Order, the fight just got harder -- but we
can’t stop now: There’s too much at stake. We need to take action at the state and federal level to protect our marine
ecosystems, our public health, and local communities from destructive floating
factory farms. But it will take all of us.
Stop floating factory farms from destroying our oceans by donating $10 or more
to Friends of the Earth today.
If you've saved your payment information with ActBlue Express, your donation
will go through immediately:
Donate $10 immediately
[[link removed]] Donate $5/month immediately
[[link removed]]Thank you,
Hallie Templeton,
Senior oceans campaigner,
Friends of the Earth
Contact Us:Friends of the Earth U.S.
Washington, D.C. | Berkeley, CA
1-877-843-8687
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