Update: The Saga of Hawaii Swordfish Longline Fishery & Sea Turtles
Remember the saga of the Hawai‘i swordfish longline fishery from the June 2019 issue – the chronicle about loggerhead and leatherback sea turtle interactions, a lawsuit settlement, fishery closures and delays in completing federal requirements that left you with a giant cliffhanger? Well, part two of that saga is finally here!
Before we dive in, let’s recap. The Hawai‘i shallow-set longline fishery that targets swordfish crosses paths with loggerhead and leatherback sea turtles on their fishing grounds located far north of Hawai‘i. To minimize the impacts from accidental interactions with the turtles (meaning hooking or entanglements), the fishery is required to use circle hooks and fish bait, be monitored 100 percent by federal observers and carry tools to
