Victory! California Officially Bans Deadly Gillnets In Historic Win For Endangered Marine Life
In a landmark win for precious marine life, California Governor Gavin Newsom has signed AB 1056 into law, officially phasing out the use of set gillnets off California’s southern coast. These massive, mile-long nets, anchored to the seafloor to catch halibut and white seabass, are notorious for killing countless ocean species unintentionally.
Sponsored by Oceana and the Resource Renewal Institute (RRI), and championed by Assemblymember Steve Bennett (D-Ventura), this law marks a turning point in ocean conservation. Over 100 species, including sea lions, sharks, rays, and seabirds, are entangled and killed in these nearly invisible nets every year. With this important new bill, the destruction will finally come to an end.
“California’s biodiverse underwater ecosystems are world-renowned and we must do our part to keep it that way,” said Assemblymember Steve Bennett (D-Ventura). “In my district, the Channel Islands Biosphere Reserve is recognized by UNESCO as one of the last examples of natural Southern California coastal ecosystems.”
Set gillnets have long been banned in most of California’s waters, yet they continued to be used around the Channel Islands and in some federal zones until now.
More than half of what set gillnets catch are thrown overboard as waste, including sea lions, sharks, rays, and other species of fish. These waters are hotspots of marine biodiversity, recent surveys found over 11,000 species living in the region.
AB 1056 will make all gillnet permits non-transferable by 2027, allowing only a one-time family transfer. After that, the permits will be permanently eliminated.
California is proving once again that ocean protection is not only possible, it’s essential. It’s time for other regions and countries to follow California’s lead. Gillnets should be banned worldwide.
