Owners of longline fishing boats in American Samoa say the US President's proposal to expand an ocean conservation area in the Pacific will damage the territory's fishing and tuna canning industry.
In a letter to Barack Obama, the Tautai o Samoa Longline and Fishing Association says it strongly believes the move is needless and will serve no purpose in the President's efforts to combat overfishing.
The Association points out that the US commercial fishing fleet in the Pacific targets highly migratory pelagic species and President Obama's proposal for the intention of preservation would be meaningless.
It says American Samoa as a hub of the Pacific US fishing fleets faces dire consequences should this expansion take effect.
