Down with bottom feeders II

There have been some exciting developments in the global campaign for a moratorium on high seas trawling.

You may recall this typist's roadside encounter with the lovely Coral Clad who raised my consciousness on this matter with a wave of her placard in early September.

Well, we now hear that US President George Bush has got the message and is calling for an end destructive fishing practices, such as unregulated bottom trawling on the high seas.

The president has pledged to work with other countries and international organizations to "eliminate unregulated destructive fishing practices that jeopardize fish stocks and the habitats that support them." He called for the enhancement of sustainable fishing practices and and end to destructive fishing practices, such as unregulated bottom trawling.

And last week New Zealand announced that it would work with Australia to seek the support of other nations for an immediate moratorium on high seas bottom trawling.

This will come as very good news to my friends at the High Seas Moratorium Now campagin. With the help of people like Coral Clad, they have been been posting pictures of people, famous and not so famous, to their website. All are calling for an end to the trawling of the ocean floor.

While heartened by this international support, Coral Clad and her High Seas Moratorium friends are anxious for Canada to join New Zealand, Australia and the United State in their call for a ban on high seas trawling.

Contact Canada's Fisheries minister Loyola Hearn to discover if Canada will support the ban on high seas trawling.