Number: 1980-44
WHEREAS, government officials of both Canada and the United States have agreed to and signed a protocol amending the U.S.-Canada Convention for the Protection of Migratory Birds; and
WHEREAS, the Protocol would authorize the taking of migratory waterfowl and their eggs from March 10 to September 1 by “indigenous inhabitants of the State of Alaska and the Indiana and Inuit of Canada for their own nutritional and other essential needs”; and
WHEREAS, the pressure exerted on migratory waterfowl resources by such vague and indefinite language could pose serious threats to the welfare of waterfowl populations on the North American continent; and
WHEREAS, the Protocol has been negotiated without public input and without an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS):
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, that the National Wildlife Federation, in annual meeting assembled, in Miami Beach, Fla., March 20-23, 1980, hereby expresses its opposition to ratification of this protocol by the United States Senate until the Protocol is amended or a memorandum of understanding is accepted by both parties so that the take authorized is
- limited to indigenous inhabitants (Permanent residents) of Alaska and the Indians and Inuit of northern Canada who reside in remote arctic areas in a traditional manner,
- essentially meeting nutritional need of those authorized to take birds and eggs and the members of their immediate family residing in the immediate vicinity of the taking,
- unavailable for sale or commercial exploitation,
- subject to regulation by each of the parties as to seasons, species, numbers and methods, and
- capable of reasonable enforcement; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that NWF urges the Department of Interior to prepare an EIS, and to provide an opportunity for public review and comment, on the Protocol prior to transmitting it to the Senate.