WASHINGTON (AP) -- The U.S. House of Representatives has voted to ban in U.S. waters what lawmakers called the "horrific" practice of cutting off a shark's fin and throwing the fish back into the sea to die.

The bill, passed by voice vote, is aimed mainly at Pacific Ocean fishermen in the highly profitable business of supplying fins to Asian markets, where shark's fin is regarded as a culinary delicacy and an aphrodisiac. The bill now goes back to the U.S.Senate for a final vote before being sent to President Bill Clinton to be signed into law.

The Commerce Department took administrative action in 1993 to halt finning in Atlantic, Caribbean and Gulf of Mexico waters after it became apparent the practice was reducing shark populations.

That ruling did not include fishing in the Pacific, where finning was less prevalent a decade ago. Fishing groups in Hawaii have questioned the effects of finning on the number of blue sharks in their waters. But environmental groups say the number of sharks killed for their fins in the western Pacific has increased precipitously in recent years, reaching 60,000 animals in 1998.

"Ending this egregious waste in U.S. waters is critical to maintaining our nation's leadership role in international shark conservation initiatives and to addressing finning worldwide," said Sonja Fordham, a shark fisheries specialist for the Center for Marine Conservation.

The bill would make possession of a shark's fins without its carcass illegal in all U.S. federal waters, which extend out 200 miles (320 kilometers) from American territory. That effectively would deter small boat operators from finning because it's not economically feasible to carry the carcasses, which have little market value.

It also promotes research into Pacific and Atlantic sharks and cooperation with other countries to stop finning.

Hawaii's governor signed into law a similar measure last June that said shark fins brought to Hawaiian ports must be on the shark or, if sliced off, the carcass must be stored aboard the ship.

Finning primarily involves ocean blue sharks unintentionally caught each year with tuna and swordfish.

The sharks, which grow to about 13 feet (4 meters) and 400 pounds (180 kilograms), are hauled aboard, their fins are sliced off and the sometimes still-living fish are dumped back into the sea. There they are eaten, bleed to death or drown.

Cunningham said sharks, with their slow growth, late maturity and small number of offspring, are among the most biologically vulnerable species in the ocean. "As an avid sportsman, and as a member of the Congressional Sportsmen's Caucus, I find this practice horrific and wasteful."