Shark Week is done, and shark fin sales should be too

Shark Week 2019 brought us seven days completely dedicated to watching our favorite scary fish swim across our television screens. While Shark Week is a beloved tradition, we often forget that these intimidating predators are also prey. In light of this, our post-Shark Week to-do list should include passing the Shark Fin Sales Elimination Act to protect declining shark populations worldwide.

While sharks may be apex predators in the ocean, humans are still at the top of the food chain. Rough estimates point to 100 million sharks being hunted and killed every year primarily for the fin trade. Because data can be hard to collect on this topic, the actual numbers could be much higher, potentially even double the estimate.