Together, we can ensure a healthy future for New England’s ocean

The ocean plays an integral role in New Englanders’ lives, our economy, and our communities. But pollution, overfishing, habitat loss, and climate change threaten its health and our future.

Our Solutions

CLF has safeguarded New England’s ocean for decades – from blocking oil and gas drilling on Georges Bank, to curbing overfishing, to pioneering smart ocean planning across the region. Today, we’re fighting for a clean, healthy, and productive ocean – for today and for generations to come.

  • PROTECTING SPECIAL PLACES: We’re pushing for strong protections for our ocean’s most important places to ensure our waters remain healthy and vibrant for generations to come.
  • SAVING RIGHT WHALES: We’re working to save New England’s iconic – yet critically endangered – whale before it’s too late.
  • BUILDING SUSTAINABLE FISHERIES: We’re fighting to restore New England’s legendary fish populations so they – and the fishing communities that depend on them – can thrive in the future.

Our Vision

New England’s ocean can again abound with cod and our fisheries flourish. We can power our homes and businesses with responsibly sited, locally made offshore wind. Our shorelines can be free from pollution and fortified against the impacts of climate change. North Atlantic right whales can make a comeback. And we can protect our most important habitats from overfishing and industrial exploitation. This is the New England CLF is fighting to create.

What We’re Up Against

Climate change puts New England’s ocean – and the communities and marine life that depend on it – under tremendous pressure. The Gulf of Maine is warming faster than 97% of the world’s oceans, triggering a massive shift in how and where key species – from whales to cod to lobster – migrate and live. These shifts could change New England’s coastal economy forever.

At the same time, critical species are at risk from other human-made threats. 

  • Once a symbol of New England culture, Atlantic cod populations have been devastated from overfishing, habitat degradation and climate change. To save cod – and support the coastal economies that depend on healthy fish populations – we must break with the status quo and develop sustainable approaches to managing our fisheries.
  • If we don’t act quickly, the North Atlantic right whale could be extinct by 2040. Most right whale deaths come at the hands of humans, whether through entanglements in deadly fishing gear or collisions with ships and boats. We must take measures now to ensure this iconic species can survive.

To protect our ocean, save its treasured marine life, and secure our coastal economies, we must pursue solutions at the federal, state, and local levels – using the law, policy, and science to effect meaningful change.