Earth's heat induced imbalance, brown pelicans are being attacked, Biden restore animal welfare, and Senate bans shark fins trade…

[View in your browser]( [ecowatch]( Top Posts [ ​In Today's Eco Update - Earth's energy imbalance. - Abused brown pelicans. - Biden to restore animal welfare. And a look at why the Senate banned the shark fin trade. – summaries below written by [Angely Mercado]( [post_image]( [Earth's Energy Imbalance Doubled in the Last 14 Years]( As temperatures get hotter and Earth seemingly [continues to bake]( a new study from NASA and NOAA confirms that Earth is indeed heating up as the [climate crisis]( continues. The study was published in [Geophysical Research Letters Tuesday]( and involves Earth's Energy Imbalance, or the difference between the heat the Earth absorbs from the sun, and the thermal infrared radiation it sends back into space. The imbalance caused by the Earth absorbing more heat has doubled in the last 14 years. Researchers attributed the imbalance to greenhouse gas emissions and to a feedback loop that was set in motion by the excessive heat. This leads to the oceans absorbing more heat and less ice covering the surface of the Earth. [Read More Button]( [9630b8e6-45a3-4648-9335-a47935d7d092.png]( [twitter]( [linkedin]( [email](mailto:?subject=Earth's Energy Imbalance Doubled in the Last 14 Years&body= [post_image]( [32 Brown Pelicans Found Mutilated in California]( Since this March, more than 30 brown pelicans from Huntington Beach to San Clemente in California have been found injured, according to the [Wetlands and Wildlife Care Center](. 22 of the pelicans have fractured wings and only 10 have survived. It is believed that the pelicans are being attacked, which is considered a violation of California and federal law. Some pelicans have been in need of emergency operations for injuries like bones protruding through their bodies. There is a reward of $500 being offered for information regarding the pelicans' injuries. The care center believes that someone or several people are behind the attacks on the brown pelicans. [Read More Button]( [9630b8e6-45a3-4648-9335-a47935d7d092.png]( [twitter]( [linkedin]( [email](mailto:?subject=32 Brown Pelicans Found Mutilated in California &body= [post_image]( [USDA Moves to Restore Animal Welfare Protections Removed by Trump]( In a reversal of Trump era corporate-friendly deregulations, the U.S. Department of Agriculture recently [announced]( its plans to re-establish animal welfare standards that food producers must meet to qualify for the USDA's [organic]( seal. Introduced at the end of the Obama administration, the Organic Livestock and Poultry Practices (OLPP) [rule]( required organic food producers to ensure indoor and outdoor space for farm animals, ending the [widespread industry practice]( of cramming thousands of hens and chickens into windowless barns. But soon after taking power, the Trump administration stopped the rule from taking effect in 2018. [Read More Button]( [9630b8e6-45a3-4648-9335-a47935d7d092.png]( [twitter]( [linkedin]( [email](mailto:?subject=USDA Moves to Restore Animal Welfare Protections Removed by Trump&body= [post_image]( [Senate Bans Shark Fin Trade]( This World Oceans Day, the U.S. Senate banned the commercial [shark fin trade]( in the U.S. and addressed forced labor and Illegal, Unreported, and Unregulated (IUU) fishing. The Shark Fin Sales Elimination Act ([S. 1106]( — is a bill that targets the U.S. shark fin trade and was passed as part of a broader legislative package called the United States Innovation and Competition Act ([S. 1260](. The Act makes it illegal to possess, buy, sell or transport [shark fins]( except for certain dogfish fins. Violators who trade or sell shark fins will be penalized under the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act fined $100,000 for each violation or the fair market value of the shark fins involved. The Shark Fin Sales Elimination Act makes it illegal to possess, buy, sell or transport [shark fins]( or any product containing shark fins, except for certain dogfish fins. There is an exception for shark fins lawfully taken with a license or permit under certain circumstances. Violators will be penalized under the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act, with a maximum civil penalty of the greater of $100,000 for each violation or the fair market value of the shark fins involved. The legislative move comes after studies about [shark]( and ray populations highlighted a [decline of more than 70 percent over the last 50 years](. According to Oceana, over 73 million sharks are killed and traded annually. Demand for [shark fin soup]( especially in Asia, [incentivizes overfishing]( and [shark-finning]( — the act of removing a shark's fins at sea and throwing its body back overboard to drown, starve, bleed to death or get eaten. A [Nature]( article, published earlier this year, listed overfishing as the primary cause and noted that three-quarters of species in this "functionally important assemblage" are now [threatened with extinction](. The researchers in the Nature study encouraged strict prohibitions and precautionary science-based catch limits to avoid population collapse and ensuing disruption of the ecological functions they serve. The new bill aims to "[close a loophole]( that many advocates blame for the death of millions of sharks annually. According to [Oceana]( even though shark finning is illegal in U.S. waters, fins can still be bought, sold, and transported throughout the United States. [Shark Stewards]( a shark advocacy group, said "the USA contributes to the global decline of sharks" because "tons of shark fins from Latin America to Africa routinely pass through U.S. ports for report to Hong Kong, China and SE Asia." The group cited a National Resources Defense Council report from 2020 that estimated that fins from roughly 900,000 sharks passed through U.S. ports between 2010 to 2017. [Read More Button]( [9630b8e6-45a3-4648-9335-a47935d7d092.png]( [twitter]( [linkedin]( [email](mailto:?subject=Senate Bans Shark Fin Trade &body= All rights reserved. [facebook]( [twitter]( [instagram]( [Unsubscribe]( {EMAIL} [Update Profile]( [about our service provider]( Sent by contact@ecowatch.com