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BRAUN: Canada leads with groundbreaking shark protections

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A lifetime of work has paid off for a tireless shark crusader.

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Canada has passed Bill C-68, banning shark finning in Canadian waters and the import and export of shark fins, a historic piece of legislation that attests to the work done by diver, award-winning filmmaker and passionate environmentalist, Rob Stewart.

Stewart’s films educated the world on the crucial role sharks play in the ecosystem and altered people’s perceptions of the alpha predator.

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Canadian filmmaker Rob Stewart is seen in this undated handout photo. Seeing their late son, Toronto filmmaker and conservationist Rob Stewart, diving into the depths of the ocean on the big screen again has been a bittersweet experience for Sandy and Brian Stewart.
Canadian filmmaker Rob Stewart is seen in this undated handout photo. Seeing their late son, Toronto filmmaker and conservationist Rob Stewart, diving into the depths of the ocean on the big screen again has been a bittersweet experience for Sandy and Brian Stewart. Photo by HO /THE CANADIAN PRESS

His first movie, Sharkwater (2007), brought the issue of shark finning to international audiences; it contributed to the banning of the practise in several countries.

Still, it is estimated that about 150 million sharks are killed every year, most for their fins. Canada is the first G8 country to pass federal legislation fully banning the import and export of shark fins, and not a moment too soon — we were the largest importer of fins outside of Asia, bringing in approximately 150,000 kilograms in 2018.

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Sen. Michael MacDonald, who worked with Stewart and was inspired to champion a shark protection bill in the Senate, praised Stewart’s contribution recently.

“The government’s amendments to the Fisheries Act in C-68, is a huge win for the movement to protect sharks. Full credit goes to all the organization and individuals across Canada who have been working tirelessly for the protection of sharks, and in particular to the late Canadian filmmaker and conservationist Rob Stewart and his family. Rob pioneered this movement — C-68 is in honour of him.”

Rob Stewart died in a dive accident off the Florida Keys early in 2017 while working on his third movie, Sharkwater Extinction.  The Rob Stewart Sharkwater Foundation, which works with shark and ocean conservation groups around the world, lives on after him.

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A ferocious predator, the great white shark. GETTY IMAGES
A ferocious predator, the great white shark. GETTY IMAGES Photo by Getty Images

On Tuesday evening, the federal government also passed Bill C-84, which outlaws all forms of sexual abuse of animals and tightens laws against animal fighting. A press release from Animal Justice, a national non-profit, called this a first small step toward modernizing Canada’s outdated animal cruelty laws.

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Parliament also recently passed legislation outlawing whale and dolphin captivity.

Animal Justice praised the passage of C-68, noting that the ban on shark finning made Canada a world leader in shark protection.

This is Rob Stewart’s lasting legacy.

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