Lawsuit Aims to Protect Bering Sea Fur Seals from Pollock Trawlers

Center for Biological Diversity sues NOAA Fisheries over declining northern fur seal population on St. Paul Island

Apr. 8, 2026 at 10:27pm

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A highly structured abstract painting in muted tones of green, blue, and gray, featuring sweeping geometric arcs, concentric circles, and precise botanical spirals, conceptually representing the complex ecological relationship between northern fur seals and the Bering Sea pollock fishery.A lawsuit aims to force federal regulators to protect the declining northern fur seal population from the impacts of the Bering Sea's industrial pollock trawl fishery.Anchorage Today

The Center for Biological Diversity has filed a lawsuit against NOAA Fisheries, alleging that the agency has failed to prevent northern fur seals on St. Paul Island from declining due to prey competition with the Bering Sea's massive pollock trawl fishery. The lawsuit challenges NOAA's annual harvest specifications, which allow the pollock trawl fleet to operate without restrictions to protect the vulnerable fur seal population.

Why it matters

Northern fur seals on St. Paul Island have declined by 70% since the 1970s, and the lawsuit claims that direct competition for prey with the pollock trawl fishery is a primary driver of these declines. This loss is globally significant, as nearly 50% of the world's northern fur seal population hauls out in the Pribilof Islands.

The details

The lawsuit alleges that the summer and fall pollock trawl fishing grounds overlap directly with the area where the fur seals feed, reducing their main food source and dispersing the dense schools of fish that nursing mothers need. The Center for Biological Diversity is asking the court to require NOAA Fisheries to institute restrictions that would prohibit pollock trawl fishing in the area around St. Paul Island during the summer pupping season.

  • Northern fur seals return annually to St. Paul Island to birth and nurse their pups.
  • The summer and fall pollock trawl fishing grounds overlap directly with the area where these seals feed.

The players

Center for Biological Diversity

A national, nonprofit conservation organization with more than 1.8 million members and online activists dedicated to the protection of endangered species and wild places.

NOAA Fisheries

The federal agency responsible for managing and conserving the nation's marine resources, including the Bering Sea pollock fishery.

Cooper Freeman

The Alaska director at the Center for Biological Diversity.

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What they’re saying

“We're asking for sensible safeguards to make sure northern fur seal mothers can find the food they need to raise healthy pups and rebuild this declining population.”

— Cooper Freeman, Alaska director, Center for Biological Diversity

What’s next

The lawsuit asks the court to require NOAA Fisheries to institute restrictions that would prohibit pollock trawl fishing in the area around St. Paul Island during the summer pupping season.

The takeaway

This lawsuit highlights the ongoing tension between industrial fishing operations and the conservation of vulnerable marine species like the northern fur seal. It raises questions about the long-term sustainability of the Bering Sea pollock fishery and the responsibility of federal agencies to protect ecologically and culturally important wildlife.