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Background


Learn more about the international trade in endangered species and the effects of economic globalization on our oceans.


Slain by Trade 1998
Slain by Trade, published in 1998 by STRP, is still relevant and provides background and context on issues related to the WTO, trade rules, fishery regulations and sea turtles.

Turtles and Trade Backgrounder
The Sea Turtle Restoration Project's fight to protect the critically endangered Kemp’s ridley turtle from drowning in the nets of shrimpers around the world led Todd Steiner and the organization to fight the WTO. After a hard-won battle to pass an adaptation to the Endangered requiring nations that export their shrimp here to use a simple “Turtle Excluder Devise” in their nets, four nations with large industrial fishing fleets challenged the US Endangered Species Act as a violation of so-called "Free-Trade" at the WTO Court.

CITES: 1999 Resolution by International Scientists Opposing Downlisting
Resolution on Hawksbill Sea Turtles and the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES)

CITES: 1999 Proposal to Downlist the Hawksbill

Globalization is Selling Off Our Future!
Economic globalization is leading to increased destruction of the Earth's resources. This destruction is a result of the demand for cheaper and increasingly rarer resources and a higher level of consumption. If we do not put the brakes on economic globalization, our resources will be irreversibly damaged or depleted.

WTO: The WTO versus Democracy
The WTO is a gross affront to democracy. It has the potential to pressure countries to change policies and decisions reached through democratic means. The WTO does not allow for public participation in decisions and the decisionmakers are only accountable to the WTO.

WTO: How the WTO Undermines Environmental Protection
This concept of lowering standards is especially true of how the WTO has ruled on trade matters related to the environment. The articles within the WTO related to the environment are nothing more than window dressing, since excuses have constantly been made to not rule according to the provisions. The cases below illustrate how the GATT/WTO's rhetoric falls vastly short of the environmental reality of its decisions:

WTO: The Story of the WTO versus the Sea Turtles
The United States government recognized that one of the main threats to the survival of sea turtle populations is the incidental capture and drowning of sea turtles in shrimp fishing nets. In 1987, the National Marine Fisheries Service created rules that required US shrimp fishers to use Turtle Excluder Devices (TEDs) on their vessels.

Say No to the WTO: Stop the Privatization of the Ocean
The daily pillaging of the ocean by large industrial fleets has caused the collapse in global fish stocks and the slaughter of a wide diversity of critically endangered marine species such as the Pacific Leatherback sea turtle. In less than two decades, according to the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), the percentage of the oceans that have been fully fished or overexploited by unsustainable fishing practices has skyrocketed from 5 to 75%. Our oceans are in serious danger.




Sea Turtle Restoration Project • PO Box 370 • Forest Knolls, CA 94933, USA
Phone: +1 415 663 8590 • Fax: +1 415 663 9534 • info@seaturtles.org
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