Number: 1988-15
WHEREAS, protection of marine mammals continues to have widespread support of the American public; and
WHEREAS, the Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA), one of the Nation’s foremost wildlife conservation laws, has been largely responsible for the current health and abundance of most marine mammal populations in waters of the United States; and
WHEREAS, problems related to marine mammals may vary greatly among coastal states; and
WHEREAS, declines in some marine mammal populations in the Bering Sea and Gulf of Alaska are a result in part of increased direct mortality of marine mammals and reductions in their prey base from interactions with commercial fishing fleets; and
WHEREAS, there are presently no management plans for marine mammal species that inhabit waters of Alaska and the Pacific Northwest; and
WHEREAS, the abundance of some marine mammal populations is of increasing concern among commercial and recreational fishermen in the Pacific Northwest because of increased interactions between marine mammals and regional fisheries; and
WHEREAS, scientifically managed marine mammal populations and commercial, recreational, and subsistence fisheries are vital to the biological stability, economic health and cultural integrity of the Pacific Northwest and Alaska; and
WHEREAS, responsibility for management of marine mammals is presently divided between the U.S. Department of the Interior and the U.S. Department of Commerce and there is a need for more coordination and consistency between these agencies and with coastal states and resource users; and
WHEREAS, the guiding objective of the MMPA is to maintain and enhance marine ecosystems and the living resources they support; and
WHEREAS, the MMPA expires on September 30, 1988, and hearings on MMPA reauthorization are likely to be held this year;
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the National Wildlife Federation in annual meeting assembled March 17-20, 1988, in New Orleans, Louisiana urges the United States Congress to carefully examine and analyze issues involving marine mammal management, including marine mammal – fisheries interactions, and to direct federal resource agencies to develop functional recovery plans for threatened and endangered marine mammals, and species management plans for protection and conservation of other marine mammals such as: sea lions, sea otters, and walruses consistent with the guiding objective of the Marine Mammal Protection Act and international treaties and agreements, in cooperation with state conservation agencies.