Each year, thousands of sharks and other marine animals die needlessly off the coast of California due to an outdated and destructive fishing method: gillnet fishing. These nets — some stretching for miles — trap everything in their path, not just fish. Sharks, sea turtles, dolphins, whales, seals, and seabirds are routinely caught as bycatch, most of them dying before they’re discarded back into the ocean like trash.

Gillnets don’t discriminate. They destroy.

Despite growing awareness, California still allows gillnet fishing in some waters. In particular, drift gillnets, used in the swordfish industry, are responsible for a devastating amount of marine life deaths — including endangered sharks like the shortfin mako, thresher, and scalloped hammerhead. Juvenile white sharks that use California’s coast as a nursery are especially vulnerable.

We are calling on California lawmakers and the Fish and Game Commission to:

• Ban all gillnet fishing in state and federal California water
• Support the transition to sustainable alternatives, like deep-set buoy gear
• Protect shark nurseries and critical marine habitats from destructive fishing practices

The ocean is in crisis — and we have a chance to change the tide. With your signature, we can push for legislation that puts conservation before cruelty, and give sharks and sea life a fighting chance.

Add your name. Speak up for the voiceless. Stop gillnets. Save the sea.