California’s coastal waters may soon be free of two of the most destructive fishing methods ever deployed… set gillnets and drift gillnets, thanks to new laws that will finally phase out these outdated and indiscriminate gears!

The Slow Sunset of Set Gillnets

Governor Gavin Newsom’s signing of Assembly Bill 1056 in October 2025 marks a crucial step toward ending California’s set gillnet fishery – an archaic and wasteful practice that has entangled and killed more than 125 species of marine life, including whales, leatherback turtles, dolphins, sharks and sea lions. Read the California Bycatch Report from April 2023 here.

Set gillnets, nearly invisible monofilament walls up to a mile long, are used to catch halibut, primarily around the Channel Islands, a United Nations–designated International Biosphere Reserve. While an earlier, stronger bill that would have banned set gillnets within three miles of shore stalled in committee, AB 1056 takes a longer-term approach. The law restricts permit transfers to a single family member, ensuring that as the remaining roughly 30 permit holders retire, the fishery will phase out entirely. This generational sunset doesn’t happen overnight, but it does ensure that the end of this indiscriminate fishery is finally in sight.

California Drift Gillnets Set to Disappear by 2027

The notorious California drift gillnet fishery, targeting swordfish and sharks, will be completely phased out by 2027, ending decades of deadly bycatch and failed management. This victory is the result of Turtle Island Restoration Network’s (TIRN) ten-year campaign, which began in 2016 and culminated in a successful phase-out law passed in 2022, after being vetoed by President Trump in 2020. As part of that campaign, TIRN published five reports documenting this devastation and exposing the economic absurdity of continuing this fishery. These massive almost invisible nets, stretching a mile long and 200 feet deep, have entangled thousands of untargeted animals over the years. Read TIRN’s overview report here.

Marine Mammals Caught and Killed

In just one decade, an estimated 885 whales, dolphins and other marine mammals were caught – accounting for 87% of all marine mammals killed in observed West Coast fisheries. Casualties included five species of whales, seven dolphin species, northern elephant seals and California sea lions. More on this in TIRN’s drift gillnet report here.

Sharks Killed and Mostly Discarded

Sharks fared no better: more than 26,000 were caught over a ten-year span, most discarded dead or injured. 60% of those were species listed as Threatened or Endangered by the IUCN, including shortfin makos and smooth hammerheads. More on this in TIRN’s drift gillnet report here.

The Driftnet Fishery Costs Taxpayers More to Manage than it Earns for Fishermen

The driftnet fishery has long been a bad deal for both taxpayers and marine life. It costs more to monitor and regulate than the value of the fish it catches. Because driftnets are inherently destructive, entangling everything in their path, strict oversight is essential to ensure compliance with state and federal laws and to protect public marine resources.

According to a 2018 economic report by TIRN (read here), the fishery’s annual catch was worth about $600,000 (based on 2013 data), while management and enforcement costs were more than double that amount. In total, the driftnet fishery operated at a net loss of $268,500 to $2 million per year – a costly and unsustainable burden on taxpayers and ocean ecosystems alike. The bottom line is clear: a mile-long, nearly invisible net cannot be used responsibly.

Celebrate—But Stay Vigilant

These victories mark an extraordinary step forward for California’s marine wildlife. Yet history shows that once a fishery closes, industry often seeks to reopen it -sometimes under the guise of “scientific research.” TIRN will remain vigilant to ensure these gains aren’t rolled back. For now, let’s celebrate this milestone toward, safer, and more sustainable oceans for marine wildlife.

For Immediate Release: February 16, 2024

Contacts: Elizabeth Purcell, 814-248-5169, elizabeth@seaturtles.org

Todd Steiner, Turtle Island Restoration Network, 415-488-7652, tsteiner@tirn.net

Breaking Waves: Landmark Legislation Unveiled to Protect Southern California’s Ocean Biodiversity 

SACRAMENTO, CALIF. — Essential first steps have been taken to address the bycatch in California’s set gillnet fishery. Assemblymember Steve Bennett (D-Ventura) has introduced Assembly Bill 2220 (AB 2220) with the goal of mitigating harm to a range of marine species within the state’s set gillnet fishery. This bill seeks to protect vulnerable marine life by implementing new measures, including the elimination of existing exemptions in the law that permit these nets to inadvertently capture and keep protected species, such as great white sharks and giant sea bass, addressing the transferability of permits, and more.

“The waters in Southern California are home to so many diverse species. The California set gillnet fishery has continued to wreak havoc on this delicate ecosystem with every life that has been lost to these nets,” said Elizabeth Purcell, Environmental Policy Coordinator for Turtle Island Restoration Network. “This fishery has been under the management scope for decades, but the level of bycatch is still unacceptable. We urge the California legislature to take this instrumental step to protect our marine life and pass AB 2220.” 

In April 2023, Turtle Island Restoration Network and Oceana co-authored a harrowing report that revealed the high levels of bycatch within the set gillnet fishery. More than half of the animals caught within this fishery are tossed overboard, often already dead or dying. Several vulnerable species are among those who have been tossed overboard, including tope sharks, bat rays, California sea lions, and more. The set gillnet fishery is even responsible for more than 90% of juvenile white shark bycatch in the state of California. Despite this, the set gillnet fishery did not have maximum net soak time limits and observers were not routinely aboard vessels, leading to large data gaps.

If passed, AB 2220 will protect marine life in Southern California waters by:

• Eliminating an exemption in the current legislation, which permits the set gillnet fishery to inadvertently catch and commercially exploit great white sharks without any catch limits. 
• Eliminating an exemption in current legislation that allows the fishery to inadvertently catch and commercially exploit giant sea bass.
• Extending the restriction on the use of set gillnets in state waters by banning the use of these nets out to three miles from the Channel Islands.
• Addressing the issues associated with the transferability of permits by making set gillnet permits non-transferable.
• Giving authority to the California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) to require third-party observers on state fishery vessels. The observer program is essential to recording accurate bycatch data. Large gaps in bycatch data were the result of the lack of observers on set gillnet vessels. 

Turtle Island Restoration Network continues to be a leading advocate for the protection of our marine biodiversity in Southern California. While we maintain the belief that gillnets do not belong in our waters, we are pleased with the critical steps being taken to save marine life from the dangers of set gillnets.

For more information visit https://seaturtles.org/set-gillnets/

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Turtle Island Restoration Network is a global ocean conservation nonprofit with offices in California and Texas, whose mission is to inspire and mobilize people around the world to protect marine biodiversity and the oceans that sustain all life on Earth. Learn more at seaturtles.org