SACRAMENTO, Calif — California state officials have released a final rule to reduce the risk that endangered whales and sea turtles will get entangled in commercial Dungeness crab gear. The new regulations, which go into effect Nov. 1, were prompted by steep annual increases in reported whale entanglements and a lawsuit by the Center for Biological Diversity.

“It’s good to see California finally taking whale entanglements seriously,” said Kristen Monsell, the Center’s oceans legal director. “This new system should reduce the risk crab gear poses to whales and sea turtles. But we’re disappointed that officials didn’t do more to encourage a conversion to ropeless gear, which is the only way to truly eliminate the threat of entanglement for these ocean animals.”

Entanglements in the thick ropes that are connected to heavy commercial Dungeness crab traps injure and kill whales and sea turtles. The ropes cut into the animals’ flesh…