Up to 716 sea lions in a portion of the Columbia River in an effort to help save endangered fish...
Add your name if you want to save the fish without hurting the sea lions!
"Approval to kill up to 716 sea lions in a portion of the Columbia River and its tributaries over the next five years to boost the survival of salmon and steelhead at risk of extinction is expected from federal officials Friday.
"The kill program has been in the works since Congress approved a change in the Marine Mammal Protection Act in 2018, allowing sea lions to be killed to reduce predation on salmon and other species. ...
"Kill operations could begin at Bonneville Dam as soon as this fall," reported The Seattle Times.
The methods used to kill sea lions will be painful and traumatic for the animals...
"It won't be pretty: poles, gaffs, squeeze traps, cages and more will be needed to isolate, contain, restrain, kill and remove the animals from what is their natural habitat. The sea lions are after all only doing what comes naturally, as they follow succulent salmon to dams that create bottlenecks that make the fish easy pickings," according to the same source.
But it gets worse...
The slaughter of sea lions may not help save the endangered fish anyway!
Predation is not the only reason the fish are dwindling. Major factors include human intervention on the waterways, such as dams, fishing, and industrial impacts.
"Sharon Young is senior strategist for marine wildlife for the Humane Society of the U.S. She voted against the program. "You can't kill your way out of this problem," she said of 13 dwindling fish runs on the Columbia and Snake," according to the same article.
Saving endangered fish is important.
But massacring sea lions is not the way to do it!
That's why we're asking every member of the Washington State Senate to take immediate action to stop this slaughter, and use a humane method of reducing predation of endangered fish!
It doesn't matter if you don't live in Washington, your signature can still make a difference.
Don't you want to save these majestic sea lions, before it's too late?
Then add your name to SAY NO to mass murder!
