P.M. BRIEFING : Rules to Protect Sea Turtles Ordered
A federal judge today ordered Commerce Secretary Robert A. Mosbacher to issue interim regulations by Aug. 7 to protect sea turtles endangered by shrimping nets.
The ruling by federal District Judge Thomas Hogan resulted from a suit filed by conservationists attempting to force Mosbacher to enforce regulations requiring shrimpers to use turtle excluder devices, or TEDs, in their nets.
In the oral ruling issued from the bench, Hogan said Mosbacher’s actions were “a total abrogation of the regulations” when on July 24 he imposed a 45-day moratorium on the mandatory use of TEDs after shrimpers threatened to resume a blockade of the Gulf Coast.
But Hogan did not insist that Mosbacher enforce the TED rule by the Aug. 7 deadline, saying instead, “I think the secretary has the discretion to adopt his own protective measures” for an unspecified interim period.
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