FINAL BILL REPORT

                 EHJM 4008

Brief Description:  Requesting Congress and the President to ban driftnets.

By Representatives R. King, Hochstatter, Cole, Orr, Haugen, Basich, Wilson, Spanel, Fuhrman, Padden, Winsley, D. Sommers, Bowman, Paris, May, Miller, Riley, Brough, Silver, Nealey, Forner, Wynne, Sheldon, Fraser, Phillips, Jones, Brumsickle, Nelson, Neher, Horn, Casada, H. Myers, Leonard, Moyer, Sprenkle, Brekke and Anderson.

House Committee on Fisheries & Wildlife

Senate Committee on Environment & Natural Resources

Background:  Driftnets are gillnet fishing gear which are allowed to drift with prevailing water currents.  The use of driftnets in the high seas caught public attention in the mid-1980's.  Issues of concern to the public included sensitivity of marine life to plastics, and the increased interception of Alaska salmon by foreign squid driftnet fleets in the North Pacific Ocean.

Although various international agreements and resolutions have resulted in reductions in driftnet use in the South Pacific Ocean, driftnet use in the North Pacific Ocean continues despite widespread concern.

Summary:  The Legislature respectfully asks the president and Congress to seek through all legal efforts in all available international forums an international ban on driftnet fishing on the high seas.

Votes on Final Passage:

House  93   0

Senate 47   0