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direct contact with humans and result in the death or injury 

 of both bears and people. The Commission recommended that, 

 if the Service had not already done so, it consult with the 

 Fish and Wildlife Service to review the assessment and 

 identify additional mitigation measures that may be necessary 

 and appropriate to ensure that this polar bear population is 

 not adversely affected by the proposed action. 



The Minerals Management Service's 

 Regional Studies Program 



As noted above, the Minerals Management Service is 

 responsible for assessing and mitigating the possible adverse 

 effects of offshore oil and gas exploration and development. 

 To help meet this responsibility, the Service has established 

 Regional Environmental Studies Programs which are administered 

 by its OCS offices in New Orleans, Los Angeles, Anchorage, 

 and Vienna, Virginia. The Service also has contracted with 

 the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's Office 

 of Oceanography and Marine Services to plan and administer 

 the Alaska Outer Continental Shelf Environmental Assessment 

 Program (OCSEAP) . 



To help the Service meet its responsibilities with 

 regard to the conservation and protection of marine mammals, 

 the Commission: reviews and provides comments on regional 

 studies plans, environmental impact statements, and requests 

 for marine-mammal related research proposals developed by 

 the Service; participates in meetings of Technical Proposal 

 Evaluation Committees convened by the Service to review 

 research proposals; and helps plan and participates in 

 meetings to review and coordinate relevant research programs 

 being conducted or planned by the Minerals Management Service, 

 the National Marine Fisheries Service, the Fish and Wildlife 

 Service, and other Federal, State, and private agencies and 

 organizations . 



General Program Review 



At their meeting in February 198 3, the Commission and 

 its Committee of Scientific Advisors met with representatives 

 of the Minerals Management Service, the National Marine 

 Fisheries Service, the Fish and Wildlife Service, and 

 others to review ongoing and planned research aimed at 

 enhancing the protection and recovery of certain marine 

 mammal populations. During the review, representatives of 

 the Minerals Management Service briefed the Commission on: 



