Tuna Diplomacy

Raised in Upper Manhattan, Margaret Spring ’82 fell in love with the sea during family trips to nearby beaches, where she’d catch killifish and gather mussels. But she also has vivid memories of how raw sewage was allowed to flow right into the Hudson River near her home. “At that time there was a huge amount of pollution going into the water,” she says. “All of that stayed at the very top of my mind.” Now, as chief conservation officer at California’s Monterey Bay Aquarium, protecting the ocean is Spring’s priority. She came to her post in 2013, after 20 years in Washington, D.C., working on environmental issues, including legislation such as the 2000 Oceans Act to get a handle on overfishing. Since her arrival at the aquarium—which attracts 2 million visitors annually—the institution has expanded its advocacy role to preserve fisheries and marine ecosystems, as well as endangered species such as sea otters, white sharks and bluefin tuna. “Aquariums are a trusted source of information,” she says. “We have a special voice.”

Part of Spring’s job is to oversee the aquarium’s Seafood Watch program, which guides consumers and businesses toward seafood that is fished or farmed in eco-friendly ways. Not only has the aquarium encouraged businesses to sell environmentally responsible products in more than 100,000 locations across the country, it has also recently worked with a presidential task force to eliminate fraud and illegal fishing for imported seafood, a threat to long-term ocean health. Seafood Watch has a global impact as well, helping countries such as Brazil, Costa Rica, South Africa and Mexico build sustainable seafood movements. “It’s quite amazing to me,” says Spring. “We’ve been able to make this transition from watchdog to advisor.”

She’s particularly passionate about saving the bluefin tuna, which has dwindled mainly because of overfishing in Japan, where a single giant Atlantic bluefin tuna—prized for sushi—can sell for more than $100,000. Monterey is the only U.S. aquarium that displays live bluefin, and during the past few years it has partnered with Japanese scientists on research projects in the hopes that a better understanding of the species will lead to stronger preservation measures. Though Japan recently announced new rules to restore the bluefin’s declining population, Spring says further action is needed. “Measures now being implemented by Japan, while a start, are long overdue and will not be sufficient to conserve and recover this incredibly important species,” she says.

An archaeology major at Dartmouth, Spring jumpstarted her career in 1991 when she postponed graduation from Duke University Law School for a year to take a fellowship on Capitol Hill. For nearly a decade she served as a lead attorney for the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation, counseling congressional members on ocean and climate issues. After she married Napa winemaker Mark Bunter in 2007 she moved to California, where she directed the coastal and marine program for the Nature Conservancy’s state chapter before returning to D.C. in 2009, when she was appointed to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. There, she spent four years tackling disasters such as the Deepwater Horizon oil spill before returning to the West Coast.

At the aquarium Spring will continue to deal with challenging issues. One immediate task is to spread the word about a November referendum to repeal California’s landmark ban on single-use plastic bags. “There’s no time to waste if you know anything about the state the ocean is in,” she says. “There’s a lot more to do.”

HEATHER SALERNO is a freelance writer based in the New York City area.