Judge rules feds didn't properly implement plan to restore Pacific sardine population

A plan by federal agencies to rebuild the sardine population in the Pacific was not properly implemented and failed to prevent overfishing, a judge in California ruled this week.

Monday's decision by U.S. Magistrate Judge Virginia DeMarchi was a victory for environmentalists who said officials did not ensure sardine stocks would bounce back within a legally required timeframe.

The nonprofit Oceana sued the National Marine Fisheries Service in 2021, claiming that Pacific sardines collapsed by more than 98% between 2006 and 2020.